Fourteen years before the BMW X5,
the BMW 325 iX is the first BMW with four-wheel drive.
A BMW off-road vehicle with four wheel
drive existed as early as 1939, but the 325iX goes into production in
1985 as BMW's first four wheel drive automobile. The 5 Series follows
this example soon after with the 525iX sedan and touring.
In the factories, "just-in-time" methods
start to alter the way work is allocated between production facilities and
suppliers. New agreements in the factories completely separate factory
hours from employee working hours.
After Formula One, turbo-charged engines
make their appearance in the American GTP Series. BMW creates an 800 hp
four cylinder turbo engine to go with the McLaren lightweight chassis;
together, these innovations increase vehicle speed to 300 km/h and higher.
The drivers in the BMW M team are John Watson, David Hobbs, Davy Johns and
John Andretti.
BMW produces more than 37,000 motorcycles in
the year of the centenary of the two-wheeler.
In 1985, the BMW K 75 is launched: a
three-cylinder motorcycle with a horizontal 750 cc water-cooled engine.
It bridges the gap between traditional two-cylinder boxers and the new
four-cylinder engines. Around the world, these reliable three-cylinder
models are the vehicle of choice for police authorities.
The BMW Research and Engineering Centre is
completed.
Wreckage from the
Titanic is discovered by Dr.
Robert Ballard of the
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The wreckage is filmed with a
robotic underwater camera.
1985 in film:
Out of Africa,
The Color Purple,
Witness starring
Harrison Ford and
Back to the Future.
Live Aid benefit concert and "We
Are The World" by USA for Africa for
famine relief in Africa. |
