SPECIFICATIONS Manufacturer: Bayerische Motoren Werke AG Origin: Munich, Germany Production: 34,318 Motor: BMW 2-cyl., 4-stroke Displacement: 582 cc Power: 26 hp Length: 9 ft.

8 in.

Identification No.

600 135250 In Germany, in the mid-fifties, the Great Recovery was clearly underway, and the population was no longer satisfied with transportation by microcar.

The new symbol of the rising middle class was the hotly contested 600-cubic centimeter displacement category.

Here, the Fiat 500 and 600, the Glas T600, the NSU Prinz, and the Lloyd Alexander fought for their market share.

These were all conventional, conservative “three box” designs.

Seeing fertile ground, BMW decided to enter the fray.

They knew that they would be doing it competitively in 1959 with their stylish BMW 700, which was already in the pipeline, but in the meantime, they had a production facility that could be adapted to build an interim car to fit into this displacement category.

The new car, shown to the pub...