Hallmark: 17 designs of the signature BMW kidney grille

A BMW without a kidney grille? Unthinkable! For almost 90 years, the iconic BMW kidney grille has adorned pretty much every vehicle – concept car or production model – produced by Bayerische Motoren Werke, better known to us as BMW. With its unmistakable shape, the radiator grill also serves to identify every BMW. As new propulsion technologies and the elimination of the cooling function have opened up new design options for the front of the vehicle, this is now also having an impact on the design of the kidney-shaped grille. Join us in a journey through BMW history, focusing on the evolution of the grille.

The BMW 303 represents a milestone in BMW history in two respects: firstly, the mid-size sedan was the company’s first six-cylinder model; and secondly, it was the first vehicle to bear what has become a hallmark that still characterises BMW nearly 90 years later – the air intake in the form of a pair of kidneys, that would become known as the kidney grille. Although radiator grilles divided by a (usually chrome-plated) center bar were nothing new in automotive design in that era, with its rounding to the top and bottom of the grille, and the placing of the blue and white quarter circles of the BMW emblem (➜ Read more: The history of the BMW logo) between the upper arches, the BMW 303 achieved an elevated, sculptural effect with its radiator grille. And what was created was an ensemble that is highly recognizable. Up until the Second World War, the twin kidney grille became ever narrower and thus more elegant on each BMW model – such as the legendary BMW 327/BMW 328 – but it always followed the shape established by the BMW 303.

First sold in the same year as the BMW 503, but clearly ahead of its sister model in terms of progressive design, the BMW 507 roadster was the first BMW to feature two large, horizontally positioned air intakes. The car’s creator, Count Albrecht von Goertz, took creative liberty with the design of the kidney grille, something that BMW designers would not do again until various design projects of the 1990s onwards. Such large air intakes were in fact a necessity on the BMW 507, as they were the only sources of fresh air for the radiator of the V8 engine under the very flat hood. The design of the front part of a car was noteworthy for another reason: the BMW 507 was the company’s first model to feature a dynamically angled front – known as a “Sharknose” – which visually extends the hood and suggests a formidable forward thrust. This feature was then ultimately established in the “New Class” of the 1960s and would also go on to characterise the vehicles of the 3, 5 and 7 Series well into the 1990s.

The mid-range models of the “New Class” heralded a turning point in every respect for BMW: technically, commercially, and in terms of the brand-typical design of a BMW. The two kidneys of the BMW kidney grille on the BMW 1500 (and its sister models the 1600, 1800 and 2000) were similar to those of the BMW 503, but were linked together for the first time, as well as being narrower than on all previous BMW models and placed between two car-width horizontal grills. With its arrangement of primary and secondary air grills, this ensemble formed the blueprint for the front end design for BMW’s core models right into the 1980s, including the 02 series (from 1966), the BMW 2500 and 2800 sedans (from 1968), and the associated BMW 2800 CS coupé (also from 1968) and its legendary later variants, the BMW 3.0 CS, CSi and CSL.

A new leap in evolution followed in 1990, with the third generation of the BMW 3 Series: here the BMW kidney grille is flat and horizontally positioned, but not very wide. Unlike preceding generations of the BMW 3 Series, the two halves of the radiator grille ensemble were separated once again. The two kidneys are decidedly rectangular with slightly rounded corners and – and this is particularly noteworthy here – they are not separated from the headlight strips by other grills, only by surfaces in the body color. This design influenced many further models from the 1990s onwards – from the BMW 7 Series (1994) and the BMW 5 Series (1995), through the BMW Z3 (1995) and the next generation of the BMW 3 Series (1998), to the first two generations of the BMW X5 (1999).

Three generations of the BMW 3 Series later, there was a new evolution: the 3 Series (F30) separate, relatively wide kidney grilles met the headlight surfaces for the first time and were not separated from the light units by side grills or body-colored surfaces. Similar designs of the BMW grille are also found on the 2015 BMW 7 Series (which was also the first model to feature visible air flap control), the current generation of the BMW 5 Series, and the latest BMW 6 Series (both 2017).

The front design of the electric BMW i3 demonstrates how the aesthetic of the BMW grille has fully left its original technical function behind. The flat, relatively wide twin kidney grille appears here with consciously closed surfaces and blue highlights. In combination, this identifies the car not merely as a BMW, but also as an innovative electric vehicle. The aerodynamics of the BMW i3 benefit from the closed kidney “grilles”.  A very similar design of the twin kidney grille on the BMW i3 is found on the BMW i8. It is also the inspiration for all forthcoming fully electric BMW models.

In two current cutting-edge BMW vehicles the twin kidney grille gained a new and relatively angular outline in 2018. From a geometric point of view, the grilles – which are connected on the 8 Series but not on the Z4 – now form horizontally positioned, very wide pentagons. Small bars, in the body color, connect the grills laterally to the headlights. As with all newer BMW coupe, their sportiness is emphasized by the fact that the grilles “open out downward” taking the visual focus of the front lower and closer to the road. Functionally speaking, these grilles serve as secondary air intakes with active air flap control that opens when necessary – and otherwise closes to reduce air resistance. In the connected version, as with the BMW 8 Series (and also other models with conjoined kidney grilles), a camera for the driver assistance systems sits in the middle of the clasp that connects the two halves of the BMW kidney grille.

Just how widely the design of the BMW kidney grille can differ between models can be seen by comparing the 3 Series with two models that debuted in 2019 – the BMW X7 and the current BMW 7 Series each have twin kidney grilles of a similar design to the 3 Series, including the horizontal bend to the upper edge. However, in both of these models the BMW grille is much larger and significantly more eye-catching – and thus much more present.

The BMW X3 has always combined comfort, everyday flexibility, and driving dynamics. The versatile model is now entering its fourth generation with a new design language (➜ Read also: Car design: the DNA of BMW). Spacious surfaces and a few, precisely defined lines ensure a clear exterior that is reduced to the essentials. The large BMW kidney grille on the upright front of the new BMW X3 radiates a self-confidence. It is a visual evolution of its predecessor. Inside the BMW kidney grille, a new structure consisting of vertical and diagonal bars adds a striking accent. The optional BMW Iconic Glow contour lighting surrounds the two kidney grille elements. By the way: The new asymmetric structure can also be found on the new BMW 1 Series.

Author: Frank Giese, Markus Löblein; Photos: BMW