Product Description

BMW is the most remarkable phenomenon to hit the auto industry in a generation. Celebrated for its luxury sports cars, motorcycles and aero engines in the pre-war era, it squandered its glamorous heritage in the 1950s; on its knees and near-bankrupt, it was rejected as a lost cause when offered by desperate banks to Mercedes-Benz. But thanks to a wealthy German aristocrat, a brilliant engineer and a young and inspirational manager, Mercedes would soon regret not having scooped up the once-glorious firm: pioneering the concept of the compact, high-quality sports saloon, the visionary new team systematically built BMW into the spectacular success we know today. Through the most expressive medium of all – the cars themselves – The Complete Book of BMW tells the story of one of the most remarkable turnarounds of the century. From the iconic 2002tii of the 1960s through the mighty M3 of the 1990s to today’s born-again MINI and the crowning glory of the Rolls-Royce Ph! antom.

"The Complete Book of BMW is a master work. The word 'definitive' is a bold claim but this book should be viewed in this light. It is the most comprehensive survey of BMW Group models from the 501 right up to this year's 1 and 6 Series published in the English language. Data tables covering specifications, production volumes and prices will be invaluable to the BMW enthusiast and the layout and production volumes are second to none. Tony Lewin deserves high praise for this outstanding book." - Chris Willows, Corporate Communications Director, BMW Great Britain

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65535 in Books
• Published on: 2004-12-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 384 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780760319512
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review

About the Author
Tony Lewin is an automotive writer and commentator specialising in the business and design sides of the auto industry. He has reported on the automobile sector for more than two decades as editor of industry publications such as What Car?, Financial Times Automotive World and World Automotive Manufacturing, and as a regular columnist in magazines and newspapers in Europe, Japan and the United States.

Customer Reviews

Too many typos and omissions
I bought this book hoping for a comprehensive, encyclopedic reference for BMWs from 1950 onward...sort of what "The Complete Book of BMW..." might lead you believe. Unfortunately, nearly every other page there are typos (referring to one model when they clearly mean another), omissions (no stats for the e28 535i???), and stupid errors (several of the production tables are blatently wrong, like that there were 60 318ti's produced in 1995; others don't add up, like the 6 series table that states: 972 + 3,325 + 3,668 = 5). I wrote to the publisher with my disappointment, and they never got back to me.

Though this book has lots of pretty pictures, and no doubt lots of correct info, I am left wishing I had put my money toward something else. A book with a cover price of $60 (thank goodness amazon sells it less) should at least have a few editors read through it, or even some enthusiast proofreaders. I counted no less than 10 errors in my first hour of skimming, and I'm only moderately knowledgeable about BMW history. Maybe the second edition will be an improvement...if it gets that far.

Very comprehensive
The book is almost four hundred pages long, but most of that is pictures
and the type is pretty big. So, you can probably finish the book in a
couple of sittings.

I'm pretty familiar with the BMW story, and I did not find many inaccuracies. The book is written from a European perspective. So, torque is given in N m instead of in lb ft. And money is listed in
DM, pound sterling or in Euros, but most books on BMW are written from
European point of view.

I will say that the copy editor probably was not very interested in the
subject matter or familiar with BMW. So, there are a few mistakes
in the text, but all in all the book was thorough and comprehensive.

Big BMW Book
It's a big glossy book all right....but spends about 75% of its space on specs.