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The BMW 335 is a six-cylinder sports sedan produced by the Bavarian firm BMW between 1939 and 1941.
BMW were producing, in their Eisenach plant, the model that would form the basis for the larger car. The 326 had already spawned successful sporting derivatives. The 335 was also to be based on the 326, but with the wheelbase and chassis extended to accommodate a 3485 cc '' M335'' six-cylinder in-line engine. Despite clearly reflecting the approach taken with existing BMW units, this was an entirely new design. Claimed maximum power output of was lower than the values advertised for comparably sized and powered
Conception
Commercial success for theBMW 326
The BMW 326 is a medium-sized sedan produced by BMW between 1936 and 1941, and again briefly, under Soviet control, after 1945. The 326 was BMW's first four-door sedan.Odin, L.C. ''World in Motion 1939 - The whole of the year's automobile produc ...
, introduced in 1936, encouraged a move upmarket.Odin, L.C. ''World in Motion 1939 - The whole of the year's automobile production''. Belvedere Publishing, 2015. ASIN: B00ZLN91ZG. This would involve BMW in challenging the dominance then enjoyed by Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
over a lucrative sector, with their 320 and 340 models.
BMW were producing, in their Eisenach plant, the model that would form the basis for the larger car. The 326 had already spawned successful sporting derivatives. The 335 was also to be based on the 326, but with the wheelbase and chassis extended to accommodate a 3485 cc '' M335'' six-cylinder in-line engine. Despite clearly reflecting the approach taken with existing BMW units, this was an entirely new design. Claimed maximum power output of was lower than the values advertised for comparably sized and powered Jaguars
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the thi ...
of the period, it achieved full power at only 3500 rpm. With , the car had top speed of .
The engine’s additional weight prompted the fitting of larger brake drums and wheels than on the 326. The 335 sustained BMW’s reputation for innovation, being the first car to offer a four-speed gear box with full synchromesh on all ratios.
The car was sold as a four-door sedan and as a two- or (more unusually) four-door cabriolet.
Launch
A prototype 335 was first presented at London in 1938. The car was branded for these purposes as aFrazer Nash
Frazer Nash was a brand of British sports car manufactured from 1922 first by Frazer Nash Limited founded by engineer Archibald Frazer-Nash. On its financial collapse in 1927 a new company, AFN Limited, was incorporated. Control of AFN passed t ...
. There had been close relations between BMW and England ever since BMW had established themselves in the small-car market by building a version of the English Austin 7
The Austin 7 is an economy car that was produced from 1923 until 1939 in the United Kingdom by Austin. It was nicknamed the "Baby Austin" and was at that time one of the most popular cars produced for the British market and sold well abroad. ...
. Frazer Nash had been BMW’s English importers since 1934, and after the war BMW design chief Fritz Fiedler
Fritz Fiedler (born Potsdam 9 January 1899: died Schliersee 8 July 1972), was an automotive engineer. His projects included the BMW 328 sports car, the ex-BMW Bristol straight-six engine, and the BMW New Class sedan.
Career to 1945
Fiedler began h ...
, the man primarily responsible for designing and developing the 335, would for several years work with Frazer Nash’s successor company in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
The production version was launched on the German market as the BMW 335 in 1939.
End of production
The German invasion of Poland in September 1939 triggered theSecond World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. Initially, aspects of Germany's peacetime economy persisted, and BMW were able to produce 335s at their Eisenach
Eisenach () is a town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, located west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia and bordering northeastern Hessian regions, situat ...
facility. Perfect production records are thought not to survive, but it appears by the time passenger car production ceased in 1941, more than 400 had been assembled.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:BMW 335 (1939-1941) 335 Executive cars Rear-wheel-drive vehicles 1940s cars Cars introduced in 1939 Convertibles Sedans