As of October 1, 2018, the M division of BMW M will get a new boss.  Markus Flasch will become Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW M, replacing Franciscus Van Meel. Austrian-born Flasch will take over the BMW Group subsidiary for ultra-sporty high-end vehicles from Franciscus van Meel, while van Meel will head the BMW Group’s “Total Vehicle” development unit.

Motorsports enthusiast Flasch is currently head of development for the new BMW 8 Series models and was previously responsible for quality management for BMW Group vehicles in the upper-luxury class segment.

Van Meel took over BMW M in 2015, coming from the Audi’s quattro GmbH performance division. Under his guidance, the M Division has grown to new levels, reporting record sales, while developing new models that have been highly praised by the M customers. The first M2, followed by the M2 Competition and the F90 M5, are just some of those examples.

The new X3 M, X4 M and upcoming M3/M4 have also been engineered under his guidance.