The date was 9 March 1966. Choosing not to launch at the Geneva Motor Show, the BMW 1600 had its first official presentation in front of the Munich Opera House on the occasion of BMW's 50th Anniversary. The 1600 appears with its "ancestors", a BMW motorcycle and a Dixi, BMW's first car. To celebrate their 50th Anniversary, BMW hired the Bavarian State Opera house in the heart of Munich and invited VIPs from all over Germany for an gala evening of entertainment. Employees were given a special treat too; a half roast chicken for only 90 pfennings!

The Neu Klasse marked the beginning of the modern sports sedan, and it become the blueprint for virtually every production BMW over the next three decades.