GTP Cool Wall: 1956-1962 BMW Isetta 300

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1956-1962 BMW Isetta 300

  • Total voters
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  • Poll closed .
GranTurNismo

GranTurNismo

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United States
Hoboken, New Jersey
1956-1962 BMW Isetta 300 nominated by @Volksauto

befc4ac0882f02b6f255bca00a5d025b.jpg


Body Style: 1-door
Engine: 0.3L air-cooled single-cylinder
Power: 13hp
Torque: 14 lb-ft
Weight: 350kg
Transmission: 4-speed manual
Drivetrain: mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Additional Information: Top speed: 53mph. BMW was on the brink of bankruptcy in the mid-1950's. Motorcycle production was low and ultra expensive cars such as the 507 were a financial loss each car they sold. BMW needed to make a car for the masses to boost sales. They soon found their solution. Iso Rivolta who has been making motorcycles and refrigerators at the time was making the 'Isetta'. It was a tiny egg shaped micro-car that combined low production cost and economy with a motorcycle chassis. BMW acquired licensing rights to the Isetta and refined it as their own car with their own drive train. The car was perfect for post war Germans who wanted a car but could only afford a bike. It was cheap, easy to maintain, repair, and park.The Isetta became a symbol of post-war economic success. BMW sold over 160,000 Isettas by the end of it's life in 1962. If not for the Isetta, BMW would have ceased to exist.


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It's certainly cool. Probably wasn't so cool back in the '50s when it came out, but nowadays it's quite cool, as it's one of those cars that's cool for little more than being adorable looking, like many other microcars. Worth noting that the Isetta quite literally "saved BMW", had it been a flop, BMW would likely be just another marque that died into obscurity and we wouldn't have the M-models we car enthusiasts lust over so much.
 
It's a quirky little thing, and probably cool for someone else to own or as a static display, but if you had one yourself when would you use it? With 13hp it's a city car, not something you'd want to be 'touring' in as you'd be a mobile chicane, but drive it in the city and you'd be too worried about getting it dinged. i just don't see it as being compatible with modern traffic. Every journey would be filled with concern, not pleasure. Cool as a thing. Uncool as a vehicle.
 
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I quite like it, i really dont think its cool though. Quirkyness saves it from a bung-out 0 though.
 
Uncool. At first glance, I even thought it was only a three-wheeler, only to find out it has a narrower axle track in the rear.
 

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