The BMW New Class () is a line of sedans and coupes produced by West German automaker BMW between 1962 and 1972. These models ensured BMW's solvency after the company's financial crisis of the 1950s and again established the identity of BMW automobiles as luxury sports sedans.
The first New Class vehicle was the 1500, a 4-door compact executive car with the new M10 (at the time called M115) OHC 4-cylinder engine. In 1965, the 2000 C and 2000 CS luxury coupés were added to the range.
Replacement of the New Class models began with the 6-cylinder E9 2800 CS in 1969 replacing the 2000 C and 2000 CS coupés. In 1972 the 4-door sedans were replaced by the larger E12 5 Series.
The New Class coupes introduced the Hofmeister kink, which has been used on most BMW cars since. Another legacy of the New Class is the iconic 02 Series, which are a shortened version of the New Class sedans.
Overview
Background
During the 1950s, the BMW line-up consisted of luxury cars with displacements of two litres or greater, economy cars powered by motorcycle engines, and motorcycles. With their luxury cars becoming increasingly outdated and unprofitable and their motorcycles and economy cars becoming less attractive to an increasingly affluent society, BMW needed a car in the 1.5 to 2 litre class to become competitive. Prototypes powered by a 1.6 L engine based on one bank of the BMW OHV V8 engine were built and evaluated without a convincing result.
In 1960, Herbert and Harald Quandt invested heavily in BMW, and gained a controlling interest in the company. as Borgward had entered liquidation the year before.
Chassis and body
The three-box four-door saloon was in many ways conventional, using a unitary structure and MacPherson strut front suspension which were becoming mainstream by the time of the 1500's introduction. Less conventional was the independent rear suspension, which featured coil springs and semi-trailing wishbones pivoted from a stout cross beam that also supported the differential housing. All New Class cars had front disc brakes.
Engines
The M10 overhead camshaft engine used in the New Class was required to displace 1.5 L initially, with the possibility to be expanded to 1.8 L. Von Falkenhausen had earlier designed an engine prototype for possible use in the BMW 700 and used this as a starting point for the M10.
|-
| 1600 (1964−66) || 10,278
|-
| 1800 (1963−71) || 141,471
|-
| 1800 TI (1964−68) || 21,116
|-
| 1800 TI/SA (1965) || 200
|-
| 2000 (1966−72) || 119,767
|-
| 2000 TI (1966−68) || 6,482
|-
| 2000 tilux (1966−71) || 17,440
|-
| 2000 tii (1970−71) || 1,952
|-
| 2000 CS (1965−70) || 9,999
|-
| 2000 C (1966−70) || 3,692
|}