How has the design of the BMW kidney grilles evolved?

The kidney grilles of the BMW are one of the most distinctive features of all the models of the Bavarian brand, and they have evolved throughout its history.

Every brand has some distinctive trait or characteristic that sets it apart from the rest, such as the star of Mercedes-Benz, the Quadrifoglio Verde of Alfa Romeo, or the round headlights of the Porsche 911. However, BMW has gone even further than all these brands, because its famous kidney grilles have adorned the “nose” of virtually all its models, with the exception of the BMW Isetta, the BMW 600 and the BMW 700.

However, they have not remained the same throughout its history, and from the slender, simple grilles of the first models to today’s, there has been a evolution in the brand’s design language.

These iconic shapes have had to adapt to the trends of each era, to aerodynamic advances and, above all, to their main function: providing good cooling for their engines. The latest step in this enormous evolution is the grille of the third generation of the BMW X6, whose kidneys are illuminated.

How were the BMW kidney grilles born?

BMW produced only three models before the famous radiator grille was introduced: first came the Dixi 3/15 PS and the Dixi 3/15 PS DA, both built under the supervision of Austin Seven. The third contender is the BMW 3/20 PS, the first and only car fully developed by the manufacturer that did not feature the famous kidney grilles in its design.

The grille found on these first models bore little resemblance to the one seen on today’s BMW models. The two kidneys had an elongated, narrow design and a size that occupied the entire front of the models. In addition, they had chrome frames and a metal mesh inside.

The first great revolution in its design came with the BMW 328 roadster of 1936. In this model, both the headlights and the fenders already form part of the car’s front end. Therefore, the kidneys feature chrome frames better aligned with the bodywork, and the inner grille has a more complex mesh, with five vertical bars for each kidney.

Another model worth highlighting in the evolution of this characteristic feature is the BMW 335 of 1939. It had oblique horizontal bars in the grille and kidneys shaped like wedges, with the aim of achieving a better aerodynamic coefficient.

The ’60s and ’70s: key years

In 1962, the “new class” of BMW arrived on the markets, a complete range of both saloons and coupés with a completely different and innovative design. The first to appear was the BMW 1500, a model fully framed within the straight-lined design trends of the sixties. The grille on this model occupied much of the front and even housed the headlights within it, so the kidneys, despite keeping their five bars, had a very small space reserved for them.

Once the first coupés designed by Karmann arrived at the end of the sixties, among which we can highlight the BMW 2800 CS and BMW 3.0 CS, they began for the first time to install the “four-eyed” look that marked the design of many models in the following decades.

The brand revived the BMW Garmisch of 1970 to pay homage to Marcello Gandini, so we recommend you take a look at it to see the diamond shapes of the kidneys on this curious model.

Thanks to the prototype of the BMW Turbo of 1972, the design of one of the brand’s jewels was inspired: the BMW M1 of 1978. However, this extended to the BMW Z1 of 1988 and the BMW 8 Series of 1989, where the kidneys were integrated more into the front, had black grilles and were framed in the body colour of the car itself.

Meanwhile, the models with the highest sales volume in the manufacturer’s range, namely the BMW 3 Series, the 5 Series and the 7 Series, kept the kidneys in a chrome finish dominating the centre of the black grille.

From the ’90s to the present day

It was not until the arrival of the BMW 3 Series in 1990 that the kidneys began to take on a more trapezoidal shape, with the upper part wider than the lower. In addition, they gained prominence thanks to their greater width and because they protruded from the front with a three-dimensional effect.

The BMW 5 Series of 1996 incorporated another feature the brand called the “kidney grille”, which was integrated into an extension of the bonnet and extended until it touched the front bumper. From that moment on, the trend has been clear: the kidneys have progressively grown to the point of those fitted to the new BMW X6 or the X7.

Furthermore, the kidneys of the BMW now have an increasingly complex design, with special care given to the design of the bars and frames, which are now configurable depending on the finish the customer chooses for the car. They have also gained in functionality, as they now open and close depending on the engine’s thermal requirements.

The latest innovation has debuted on the new BMW X6, in which the kidneys feature lighting for the first time in the brand’s history. This lighting activates when the car is unlocked or locked, and the driver also has the option of switching it on or off manually, so it can remain lit while the car is in motion.