Motor Vehicle Tips

BMW, the German brand of motor vehicles, launched its motorcycle manufacturing company named BMW Motorrad in the year 1923. The history of the BMW motorcycle originally began in 1921 though. 1923 was when the first motorcycle was released but during World War I the company manufactured aircraft engines as its first product. The first motorcycle introduced by BMW Motorrad was the R32 with the flat twin boxer engine most associated with the company’s history.

The plant for producing BMW Motorrad motorcycles is located in Berlin, Germany. China, Austria, and Taiwan are other locations where BMW Motorrad engines are manufactured outside of Berlin, Germany. Over 100,000 motorcycles were sold by BMW Motorrad in the year 2008 and the most popular model was the R1200GS. The year 2008 also saw BMW Motorrad launce its G450X model, launching the company into serious motorcycle competition. The customers of BMW Motorrad can also purchase carbon fiber helmets from their collection of motorcycle gear.

Berlin, Germany is the plant that manufactures the four main series of motorcycles from BMW Motorrad. The four main series are the F series, the G series, the R series and the K series. The K series features four cylinder engines, the F series features parallel twin engines, the R series features twin cylinder boxer engines and the G series features single cylinder engines. The Isle of Man TT race was won by BMW Motorrad in 1939, the first time a non-British manufacturers won the race. The 2009 Superbike World Championship will feature BMW Motorrad for the first time and the team will be known as Team Alpha BMW. The factory team will be led by Spanish rider Ruben Xaus and Australian rider Troy Corser. Enthusiasts of BMX and Motocross can also purchase BMX helmets and motocross helmets from BMW Motorrad. BMW Motorrad, in the past, has manufactured motorcycles that also have side cars. Side car motorcycles were some of the most popular forms of motorcycles during the World War I and World War II eras because they could carry more than one person at a time. Collectors covet the BMW Motorrad motorcycles manufactured during the pre-war era. An auction is held each year in Las Vegas, Nevada for historic BMW Motorrad motorcycles.

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I used to work with a guy who told me that his wife worked for Colt Cars in Cirencester England. I can recall saying "who the devil are they!I guess this was a little rude but I though I had heard of most car manufactures and I didn’t know these guys. Fortunately for me he ignored how rude I was and went on to explain that the aforementioned Colt Cars were in fact a joint venture with Mitsubishi, who I did know and was set up largely to import cars into the UK.

I had forgotten that Britain used to have strict import quotas on foreign vehicles in a vain attempt to protect British manufacturers from the threat to their market from foreign imports. It was not until the people of Britain AKA the Great British public finally worked out that British cars were rubbish and started buying foreign cars instead, this spelled the end for the UK car manufacturers which is a shame but sadly true.

There was a small backlash from people of a certain generation against buying foreign cars particularly Japanese ones but when their Morris Maxi’s and Marinas finally rusted into oblivion they begrudgingly grasped the nettle and now wouldn’t be seen driving anything other than a Micra or Yaris or indeed a Mitsubishi Colt.

Mitsubishi have had mixed fortunes over the years with some successful models and of course you can’t really mention Mitsubishi without talking about their successes with the Ralliart division and the whole Evolution phenomenon. Aside from this though the history of Mitsubishi is quite complex and they have had business partnerships with companies you would not have expected, notably Volvo and Daimler Chrysler to name but two.

Mitsubishi Corporation is a huge concern in Japan of which Mitsubishi Motors are a subsidiary of and with a history that dates back as far as 1917. The logo of three red diamonds, which is shared with over forty other companies within the group, predates Mitsubishi Motors itself by nearly a century. It was chosen by Yataro Iwasaki who was the founder of Mitsubishi. Apparently this represented the badge of the Tosa Clan which had first employed him and his own family emblem was three diamonds. The name Mitsubishi is an amalgamation of Mitsu ("three") and Hishi (literally meaning "water chestnut", which is often used in Japanese to denote a diamond or rhombus).   

Mitsubishi are currently the seventh largest car manufacturer in Japan and seventeenth in the world which puts them as fairly large but not huge by any standards. The main problem for Mitsubishi was that there was a lack of models for the public to choose from, they have however in the last few years worked hard to improve their range of models.

After working with Chrysler since the 1970’s Mitsubishi were then involved with Daimler Chrysler until around 2005. They have also had alliances with Proton and Hyundai but now after some quite drastic financial reorganisation the company seems to be more settled and were able to reveal the award winning I model in 2006. The latest Mitsubishi Lancer received a good reception and Mitsubishi has also now joined up with Peugeot and Citroen to produce the 4007 and C-Crosser these will be sports utility vehicles based on the Outlander. The actual Outlander has superior fuel economy and lower C02 emissions than anything else in its class.

The Shogun or Pajero whose name is rumoured to be rude in Spanish is another vehicle which has ensured Mitsubishi’s success over the years. The latest version is far more refined and is now pitched at the luxury SUV market.

A lesser known fact about Mitsubishi is that Jackie Chan has had a long association with the company so with him on their side I guess they will always be a contender! 

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