The BMW 700 came available in 1959. It was available as 2 door sedan or coupe. It had a two cylinder engine with 30 HP. In 1960 a sport coupe with 40 HP came available and a convertible was introduced. In 1962 BMW introduced the 700 luxury LS sedan. The convertible was now also available. In 1964 a coupe LS came available and the standard sedan and coupe went out of production. The convertible also went out of production a few months later. The LS models went out of production in 1965. There were a total of 180,000 of these cars made.

Like the Chevrolet Corvair, the BMW 700 was built with an air-cooled "Boxer" engine in the rear. The BMW 700 was powered by the R67 motorcycle's 697cc, 2-cylinder engine. A turbine at the end of the crankshaft cooled the two cylinders.

Giovanni Michelotti provided the chic, Italian styling. The first 700 was a 2+2 Coupe, and it was soon joined by a 2-door Sedan with more space and style. In 1961, a longer wheelbase Luxus model appeared, and in 1962 the name was changed to BMW LS. In 1963-64, the name was changed to 700CS.

BMW asked Hans Stuck Sr. to campaign a competition program for the 700. 19 lightweight RS models with 73hp engines were raced, most notably by Hans Stuck Sr. At the age of 60, Stuck claimed the 1960 German Hill Climb Championship in a BMW 700. Stuck's victory was the first for a BMW automobile in 20 years. The last automotive victory for BMW was in a 328 in the Mille Miglia road race in Italy in 1940. Between 1960 and 1965, the BMW 700 secured 22 international class victories in hill climbs, rallies and touring car races.

BMW's racing engineers developed the BMW 700 RS especially for hill climb events. The RS shared some of the axle components with the original BMW 700, but the engine was substantially modified. The extra-light and extremely low aluminum body rested on a space frame. The flat-twin power unit equipped with two Dell'Orto carburetors produced 70 hp at 8000 rpm from just 700 cc.

Racing victories for the 700 came against cars with considerably more power, but the other cars were unable to match the 700's nimble handling. With its rear-engine layout, excellent braking and handling, and lightweight body, the 700 was truly a driver's car.

A sport version of the 700 featured dual Solex carburetors and short-intake manifolds, which boosted output to 40hp. Revisions to the cylinder head and camshafts ultimately boosted output to 75hp and top speeds to 105mph.