BMW Is Changing Fast — But Enthusiasts Might Be Winning
Electric cars, racing wagons, and manual M models show BMW still cares about drivers.
Electric cars, racing wagons, and manual M models show BMW still cares about drivers.
The BMW Group Plant Hams Hall will build V12 engines into the next decade as Rolls-Royce abandons its target of going fully electric by 2030.
Rising costs, an eight-month regulatory lag behind foreign competitors, and a generation of younger buyers who never caught the bug — the forces that killed AC Schnitzer were a long time coming.
The company's product chief explains most automakers have a regional focus whereas BMW has a global strategy by offering everything a customer could ever want.
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The luxury brand believes there's not enough demand in North America to warrant selling LWB models.
BMW's Head of Production walked us through the Munich plant's Neue Klasse transformation, confirmed the new i3 launches there first, and made no secret of what he thinks the EU is getting wrong on industrial policy.
BMW isn't saying no to an even bigger SUV, but it's not saying yes either. For now, the luxobarge remains under consideration.
BMW tells us the new i3 Sedan is going to be assembled at the San Luis Potosí plant from 2028. Meanwhile, the iX3 SUV will be built there from next year.
BMW is open to selling the new i3 wagon alongside a 3 Series-badged version with conventional drivetrains.
BMW's product boss confirms the i3 will serve as a successor to the i4, but that might not be the whole story.
BMW's product chief says an electric sports car is "not unlikely" — and with a capable platform already in place, the only real question is timing.