What do the model numbers of BMW mean?

If you don’t know much about cars, you can easily recognize them and notice the manufacturer because of emblems on the front and rear on the car.

What are the numbers on the boot? I’m sure there are some people who are wondering or you don’t know exactly what it is. In this article, we will take BMW as an example and explain the rule of numbers and little tidbits.

BMW is a German automotive manufacturer chasing the theme “Driving Pleasure”. BMW stands for “Bayerische Motoren Werke” which means Bavarian Engine Manufacturing in English.

In many cases, BMW uses numbers like 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 as model names. There are also some alphabets like “i”, “d” & “x” after these numbers for some models. In other cases, BMW also uses alphabets, such as “M”, “X” & “Z” as the model name. We will figure out these numbers and alphabets.

Meaning of the first number/letter

BMW uses the odd numbers, 3, 5, and 7 for sedans and even numbers, 2, 4, 6, and 8 for coupes or similar cars. The 1 series is the smallest and cheapest model of BMW. BMW uses the letter X as a model name, which is used for SUV shapes and four wheel drive models. BMW offers five SUVs from the X1 to X6. The X1 and X3 are the compact SUVs, while X4 is a compact entry level. X5 and X6 are bigger size SUVs.

The letter “Z” in BMW means “Coupe / Roadster”. The Z3/Z4 are sport cars of 2 seater coupe. The small letter “i” in front of numbers stands for “Innovation” which means electric/hybrid models. The i3 is an electric car which is a small hatchback. The i8 is a Plug-in hybrid of a coupe sport car.

Meaning of the last letter

There are 2 famous letters at the end of the model name such as “i” and “d”.

The small letter “i” behind numbers means “Injection” = petrol vehicle. The small letter “d” means “Diesel”. Also there are some other letters which are at the end of the name;

“C” = Coupe/Convertible

“e” = Electric/Plug-in hybrid

“GT” = Grand Tourismo

“L” = Long wheel base

“x” = For wheel drive

In addition, BMW uses the words “xDrive” and “sDrive” for the drive system. “xDrive” means four wheel drive (4WD). “sDrive” means two wheel drive (2WD).

To sum up, the first letter of the model name tells “Series(model)”. If the first letter is numbers, the next 2 letters mean engine size. For example, “320i” means 3 series 2000cc petrol. Nowadays these numbers are sometimes not equal to the engine size. In some cases, such as 323i and 523d are not 2300cc but 2000cc.

Some examples of BMW model names;

320i = 3 series 2000cc petrol

523d = 5 series 2000cc diesel

X1 xDrive 20i = 4WD 2000cc petrol SUV

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