Long live sport

50 years of the BMW 3 Series: from niche to number one

(Bild: BMW)

Its success story is not over yet: The BMW 3 Series was launched in 1975 as the successor to the 02 models and became the dynamic heart of the brand. BMW has already sold more than 20 million 3 Series, and the eighth edition of the bestseller is getting ready to take off. But the first 3 Series (E21) already set standards.

Sometimes a three is enough to be number one. When BMW presented its new entry-level model in Munich's Olympic Stadium in the early summer of 1975, not even the greatest optimists realized what a success story it would be. The only thing that had been known for some time about the successor to the legendary small sports sedans 1502-2002 was the name: after the BMW 5 Series Sedan, which had ushered in a new naming era in 1972, the more compact dynamo, also drawn by star designer Paul Bracq, would have a 3 or a 4 as its first number.

BMW's 02 series

(Bild: BMW)

It became the 3 - and this first 3-series (E21) retained the fascination of the disguised two-door 02 family sports car, which initially with four-cylinder engines, but from 1977 also with smooth-running in-line six-cylinder engines, kept all nippy saloon rivals from Alfa to Volvo at bay and even shunned popular sports cars such as the Porsche 924.

Whether as an automotive star in TV crime dramas such as Derrick and Tatort, posing on the Kö and Kurfürstendamm or in Schwabing, in touring car races or as a company car with premium flair: the 3 Series boomed and thus initiated the development of competitors such as the Mercedes 190. After just six years, the 315-323i models became the first BMW model series to break the one million unit sales barrier and at the same time surpassed the already high bar set by its 02 predecessor. The first highlight of a best-selling career that continues to this day: with over 20 million units sold in seven generations, the BMW 3 Series is the world's best-selling premium mid-size model.

Meanwhile, the eighth 3 Series is already getting ready for take-off: as soon as this year's many celebrations for the golden anniversary are just a memory, the electric i3 (NA0) will open a new chapter on the New Class architecture in 2026. For the first time, the 3 Series will then be available in a fresh twin pack, as the retreaded 3 Series (G50) with conventional engines will be launched just a little later alongside the i3.

Two dynamos in the premium mid-range, reminiscent of the beginning of the Bavarian success story. Back then, half a century ago, when the 1502 extended the career of the already nine-year-old 02 family by two years - as an inexpensive entry-level model in the BMW portfolio, which was sold alongside the visually much larger and more solid-looking BMW 3 Series (E21).

In fact, the 4.36 meter long first 3 Series surpassed the dainty-looking 02 models by an impressive 13 centimeters. The stately appearance of the 3 Series matched the ambitions of BMW boss Eberhard von Kuenheim, who wanted to take the step from niche player to global player with new models. He succeeded even more confidently than he had hoped, because the 3 Series exceeded all expectations: By December 1983, 1.36 million units had been produced, a new record for a BMW model series - and CKD assembly of the bestseller took place on several continents (CKD = components and assemblies are delivered and only assembled into the finished vehicle in the country of import).

E21 continued to run parallel to the E30
What had begun with the 1502 - the parallel production of two generations - continued with the 315 (E21) from 1982, as this budget 3 Series with only 75 hp was also offered for several years as an alternative to the second 3 Series generation (E30).

The BMW 315 continued to be built even after the introduction of its successor.

(Bild: BMW)

Incidentally, the slogan "There can't be just one" was also used by the white and blue brand to refer to the variety of 3 Series models. The first 3 Series, built in typical 1970s pop colors such as "Inka" (light orange) or "Golf" (yellow), had not yet delivered the unprecedented variety of six body variants (including Touring and Convertible) and ten engine versions (for the first time also as a furious M3 and efficient diesel) in which the E30 appeared in the 1980s. But this two-door model was also available as a five-seater convertible from 1977, albeit not directly from BMW.

The first 3 Series convertible did not come from BMW
It was realized by coachbuilder Baur, who removed the tin roof from the saloon and installed a construction consisting of a roll bar, a "Targa roof" over the front seats and a soft top over the rear seats. This Baur Topcabriolet was sold through the BMW dealer network, and despite the high conversion costs, around 4600 convertible buyers were found. To put this in perspective: the small Opel Kadett Aero - also manufactured by the Baur coachbuilder - did not even achieve a third of this number of units.

The first 3-series convertible was actually a Targa and was converted by Baur.

(Bild: BMW)

In the 1970s, however, driving pleasure was defined more by sporting temperament than by the pleasure of fresh air. Here too, BMW hit the nerve of the times better with the 3 Series than others, who either concentrated on coupés or only produced small compacts such as the Kadett GT/E and Golf GTI.

The early E21 was not yet "the car with the hard bite", as BMW boss von Kuenheim called it in reference to the former 2002 tii, but as early as 1977, the Munich-based company replaced the muscle-poor 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines in the 320 and 320i models with a powerful straight-six with turbine-like refinement. The six-cylinder 323i with 143 hp was delivered as a treat for speedsters - at that time almost as much power as in the Mercedes 280 S S-Class. Things got even wilder, as tuning specialists à la Alpina, Schnitzer and Hartge showed on the road and on the track.

Alpina made the E21 models with four-cylinder engines, but also with six-cylinder engines, faster; the Alpina B6 2.8 could even chase the Porsche 911 with a 200 hp 2.8-liter six-cylinder engine.

The fastest work of art in the world at the time: the BMW 320i Group 5 art car designed by pop artist Roy Lichtenstein started at Le Mans in 1977.

(Bild: BMW AG)

The 3 Series (E21) first made art history in 1977: while the Swedish pop band Abba were dreaming of financial prosperity in their chart-topping song "Money, Money, Money", BMW commissioned pop artist Roy Lichtenstein to refine the 3 Series, which had long since become an automotive symbol of prosperity. Lichtenstein transformed a BMW 320i Turbo into an art car, and this Group 5 racing car in "Benday Dot" livery promptly finished ninth overall at Le Mans. This fastest art in the world gained cult status when BMW added further 3 Series generations to its Art Car line-up, including a 1989 M3 (E30) with a Ken Done look, a 1992 BMW M3 GTR (E36) by Sandro Chia and a 2010 E90 in a pop art outfit by Jeff Koons.

The art cars exemplify how the 3 Series has relied on dynamism and sportiness as the cornerstone of its success story in all generations. There are no flops in the series of seven 3 Series to date; small crises, such as quality deficits in the E36 in the 1990s, were quickly resolved by the Bavarians and BMW found answers to new rivals such as the Mercedes 190 and C-Class as well as the Audi A4 or Volvo S60 and Lexus IS. Today, despite the SUV hype, the 3 Series is one of the last globally coveted premium classics.

Expert Christoph Pichura from Classic Analytics explains the popularity of the BMW 3 Series (E21) in the classic car community: "With the E21, the 3 Series became the most important model series in the BMW Group and had practically no competition until the mid-1980s. Apart from the Baur Topcabriolets, the individual versions differ only in terms of the engine; as is usual with BMW, the 323i, as the most powerful model, is still the most expensive variant today. You have to pay at least 28,000 euros for a good example."