Introduced in 1955, it had almost everything in common with the Italian Isetta, except the engine (BMW used its own 250-cubic-centimeter 4-stroke 9-kW motorcycle engine) and few modifications to the body (for example, the headlamps were moved slightly up); the first model produced in Germany also included a heating system, not present in the original model. Surprisingly, the BMW Isetta was an immediate success; over 160,000 units were made from 1955 to 1962 – including a longer a more powerful 4-seat version, the BMW 600 – until the competition with the much larger Volkswagen Beetle and BMW 700 put an end to its commercial success.
