Looking back at 84 years of BMW roadsters
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/timewarp/" rel="tag">Classics</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/convertibles/" rel="tag">Convertible</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/sports/" rel="tag">Performance</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/videos/" rel="tag">Videos</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/bmw/" rel="tag">BMW</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/luxury/" rel="tag">Luxury</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/comparisons/" rel="tag">Comparisons</a></p><a href="/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/#continued"><img alt="XCAR covers the history of BMW roadsters through the years." data-mep="11656" src="http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/ba7da1c0f96c9ed5041b847fd 8fca173/XCAR-BMW-Roadsters-507-2.jpg" /></a><br />
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Today <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/bmw/">BMW</a> is a top player in the luxury vehicle market, but it wasn't always so. With origins as an airplane engine builder early in the 20th Century, it broke into the automotive industry when it bought Automobilwerk Eisenach in 1928. That German manufacturer was licensed to build the Austin Seven under the name Dixi DA-1, which could be had in a roadster body style. In 1929, BMW dropped the Dixi name, and by 1936, it was building a car it designed in-house, the 326 sedan. That was followed by the company's first roadster of its own design, the swoopy two-door 327 of 1937.<br />
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<em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apqDx0o6ZgA">XCAR </a></em> picks up there, and gives a history of BMW's iconic roadsters starting with the 327, ending with today's <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/bmw/z4/">Z4</a>, and covering everything in between - including the beautiful post-war 507 of 1957 and the funky, plastic-bodied 1989 Z1.<br />
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The video, which we've included <a href="/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/#continued">below</a>, is a good history lesson and a great chance to see a bunch of classic BMWs, spanning 84 years, all driven back to back within the safe confines of a racetrack. When you have a spare 20 minutes, go ahead and take some time to watch it.<p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Looking back at 84 years of BMW roadsters</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/">Looking back at 84 years of BMW roadsters</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Tue, 01 Oct 2013 13:01:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20733696/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/10/01/looking-back-84-years-bmw-roadsters-video/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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