BMW Welt and Museum

Motorhead or not, you won’t fail to be impressed by BMW’s fresh brontosaurus print on the Munich landscape.

And why shouldn’t a glorified car dealership become one of city’s major tourist drawcards? BMW does stand for Bayerische Motoren Werke (Bavarian Motor Works), don’t you know!

GREAT DESIGN: BMW Welt with its double cone and the company's "four-cylinder" headquaters in the background. Pic:© Stuart Anderson - Destination Munich

Although I can hardly tell the difference between a steering wheel and a sump gasket my visit had me dreaming of tearing down the Autobahn in one of their finely made machines.

The company’s Munich “campus” has four main parts: the swish new BMW Welt, a museum, a production plant and world headquarters office building.

HOT WHEELS: These rides need no pimping. Above is the M1 Homage roadster. Pic:© Stuart Anderson - Destination Munich

BMW World (BMW Welt)

Cars aside, the sheer architecture of this building is enough to get my heart racing.

I’ve heard it was the world’s first pile that couldn’t have possibly been designed without the help of Computer Aided Design.

You’ll understand why after the first glimpse: A glass and steel “double cone” swirls towards the flat-as-a-pancake roof, itself decked with enough solar panels to power a small suburb.

Designed by Austrian company Coop Himmelb(l)au and opened in 2007, BMW World is essentially a delivery centre where the rich-enough can pick up their new rides.

There’s a huge show-off factor. Inside
the double-cone are some of BWM’s
latest jalopys along with interactive
displays – you can touch, spin and twist while learning about the automaker’s technology.

Displays are interspersed with rather bizarre examples of “auto art” – an arrangement of peacock feathers splayed over an inverted car bonnet, for example.
The main building has an obnoxiously large cafe, motorcycles (that you can sit on) and, you guessed it, more cars. Enjoy the ride.

CRANKIN' IT: BMW Welt has some nice interactive displays, including this one where you can see how the brake energy syetem works. One of the weird bonnet sculptures is in the background. Pic:© Stuart Anderson - Destination Munich

BMW Museum

The big, silver “salad-bowl” across the way houses the museum, re-done and re-opened in 2008.

90 years of BMW history are accessed through a downward spiralling staircase.

Exhibitions are categorised into seven “thematic blocks” looking at design, the company, motorcycles, technology, motor sport and the brand.

My favourites were the dainty 1950’s Isetta “bubble car” and the downright sexy red M1 Homage roadster in the lobby.

PURE GROOVINESS: A 1955 Isetta "bubble" car. Pic: CC by Biso

BMW Munich Plant

The real works gets done in the half-a-square kilometre factory space behind the museum. The plant employs over 10,000 people and a few robots.

Each year the plant churns out about 200,000 BMW 3 Series saloon and touring cars as well as an extra 300,000 engines.
You can take a 2.5 hour tour of the plant which involves walking over 2kms.

BMW Headquarters “Vierzylinder” (four-cylinder)

SLICK: The salad bowl-shaped BMW Museum. Pic:© Stuart Anderson - Destination Munich

This is one very funky office block.
A Munich landmark since the 1972 Olympics,

BMW’s global headquarters consists of four “floating” columns suspended above the ground to a central support tower.

It tops out at just over 100m and was declared a historic building in 1999.

Suggested pages Munich's Olympic Park is right next door More technology at the Deutsches Museum Go from BMW Welt to the main Munich Attractions page Return to Destination Munich Home