Bimmer vs. Beamer: I'm confused.

I'm not Takumi

I'm not Takumi

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2007
Messages
727
Location
Hawaii
Car(s)
Toyota AE86 Corolla
I've been raised on the established fact that Bimmer refers to the BMW Car, while Beamer refers to the BMW motorbike.

But is it a US-centric thing? I was watching AutoTrader and Wheeler Dealers on YouTube, and Mike Brewer for some odd reason kept referring to the BMW Car (A touring 3-Series (WD), a Used 2000-ish 3-Series car (AT), and some Lime-green Special Edition 3-series (AT)) as Beamers.
 
I don't know about the States, but here in the UK "beamer" (or "beemer") refers to BMW cars
 
yep I say either but usually Beamer refers to the cars.
 
I swear we had a thread on this. Hmm.

Anyway, Wikipedia knows all:

The term "beemer" started as an acronym for the abbreviation "BMW," adapted from the early-20th century British pronunciation of BSA (as "beeser" or "beezer"), whose motorcycles were often racing BMWs. Over time, the term became closely associated with BMW motorcycles.

In the United States, the term "bimmer" was later coined to refer (exclusively) to BMW automobiles. As such, use of the word "beemer" to refer to a BMW automobile is frowned upon by some BMW enthusiasts,[4] because it is the term used for motorcycles. Although the distinction is completely arbitrary, to this day, the media, movies, and most people still use the term "beemer" to refer to the automobiles.

The initials BMW are pronounced "bay emm vay" in German. The model series are referred to as "Dreier" ("Three-er" for 3 series), "F?nfer" ("Five-er" for the 5 series), "Sechser" ("Six-er" for the 6 series), "Siebener" ("Seven-er" for the 7 series).
Click to expand...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW#Culture
 
I'm not Takumi said:
But is it a US-centric thing?
Click to expand...

Yes it is. If you'd comment on someone's bimmer/beemer here in Germany all you'd get would be stange looks.

It's either a BMW motorcycle or a BMW sedan/SUV/roadster.

Meh, Viper said or better quoted it all already.
 
Last edited:
Alok said:
Meh, I use Bee Em Dubs :p
Click to expand...

So you shall be called Master of confusion from now on! :)

Strangely, I wasn't even aware of the term beamer, but, like Swek already said, hardly anybody in Germany will have heared of either expression anyway.
 
I've never heard "bimmer" in Australia, only "beemer"...
 
Here, all BMW's are referred to as beemers, mainly because in certain stronger accents bimmer might be mistaken for bummer.


and you wouldn't drive a bummer, would you?
 
watto said:
I've never heard "bimmer" in Australia, only "beemer"...
Click to expand...

It may only be certain parts of the US because I've never heard it pronounced "bimmer". People (at least the ones I'm around) generally say "beemer", but spell it "bimmer".
 
beemer = beamer = bimmer = BMW
 
I don't see why it has to be shortened at all, I mean, it's an acronym to start off with!

(If you wanted to be totally anal you could say Bavarian Motor Works all the time, but I think your tongue would eventually commit suicide)
 
Zesty said:
I don't see why it has to be shortened at all, I mean, it's an acronym to start off with!

(If you wanted to be totally anal you could say Bavarian Motor Works all the time, but I think your tongue would eventually commit suicide)
Click to expand...

I don't know why but every BMW enthusiast/owner (and some dealers) i have ever met hates it when you use the full name.

as for Bimmer v. Beamer i have never heard anyone use bimmer in conversation. Granted i don't hang around with alot of BMW owners (cars or bikes) but still you would think i would have heard something at autocross.
 
Bimmer is used by the BMW motorcycle owners in US. For some reason they hate the car owners. Often walking around around with shirts that read... I didn't know BMW made cars until I passed one on the road.
 
I have yet to hear someone say "bimmer".
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top