1958' BMW Isetta

The BMW Isetta is a highly sought-after car of historical interest. It could also be called Micro Mobility Vehicle. Forerunner of modern Smart, the Munich microcar had combined an intelligent concept with the elegance of simplicity. For the time, the Isetta was a true futuristic car. Had it not been for the Isetta, perhaps today the BMW brand would no longer exist ... In the 1950s, BMW was in crisis and a new model was needed that did not require high costs for development and design. At the Turin Auto Show in 1954, BMW found the solution: at the stand of Iso Rivolta, an Italian manufacturer of refrigerators and mini cars, there was a 3-wheel car with a huge front door, the Iso Isetta. The BMW delegation acquired the licensing rights and production facilities on the spot. The “Motocoupé” was born from a project of the Italian manufacturer Iso Rivolta and is part of the so-called bubble cars. Characteristic of the Isetta are the front hatch and the single-cylinder four-stroke engine pulsing in the tail. To give the bubble car a name, BMW decided to take inspiration from its roots. Isetta is an Italian diminutive form that comes from Iso. In terms of the number of wheels, however, BMW has decided to deviate from the Italian ancestor: the original only had three, while the German version of the Isetta left the factory with four wheels. In 1956, the Bavarian house launched the BMW Isetta 300 which had higher torque, a displacement of 300cc and an output of 13hp. In both versions, the small bubble car could reach a top speed of 85 km / h. On short distances and in the city, the heroin of everyday use was unrivaled. With a length of only 2. 28 meters and a flyweight of 350 kilograms, it was versatile and easy to handle like no other. It could accommodate two adult passengers sitting next to each other like a "real" car, a prerogative that no other microcar could offer. The hatch that opened forward, like in a refrigerator, made it possible to get in comfortably. The steering wheel and steering column moved to the side with the tailgate. The public understood: the Isetta was not a limousine in the Lilliputian version, but a new concept car, a car that had arrived on the market at the right time: it was the microcar of the 1950s.

The car we propose, from 1958, was part of a Microcar Museum. Completely restored, it was registered and approved by ASI Targa Oro. A general overhaul was performed in July 2020 at a specialized workshop. They were redone the brakes with replacement of the jaws, cylinders, pipes, bearings, coil / tacks candle and treatment of tancherite to the tank. It is equipped with a battery switch and is supplied with a customized vehicle cover. A German BMW advertising campaign dedicated to her said: “You will always be happy in the BMW Isetta - in all kinds of weather”. Today this Microcar is ready for new adventures!