Manama - BMW Group Middle East has announced that 2009 sales of BMW and MINI in Bahrain achieved a two per cent increase over 2008 sales figures. Euro Motors, the exclusive importer of BMW Group in Bahrain, ranked among the top five performing markets for BMW Group Middle East. The growth also signals the importance and strength of the Bahraini market despite a challenging year for the automotive industry.

Contributing to Euro Motors’ solid performance in 2009, the BMW 7 Series saw a 224% increase in sales in Bahrain and was the top selling BMW vehicle. The BMW 7 Series combines ultimate style, comfort and luxury with supreme driving dynamics and pleasure, and has been designed around BMW’s robust EfficientDynamics strategy to reduce fuel consumption and emissions, making it the most fuel efficient engine in its class.

Building on its successful launch in 2008, the BMW X6 Sports Activity Coupé achieved a 59% increase in sales in 2009 making it Euro Motors’ second bestselling vehicle of the year and a testament to the ongoing appeal of the world’s first Sports Activity Coupé.

Paul Yates, General Manager, Euro Motors said, “In a challenging economic climate, where many car manufacturers suffered losses, a two per cent increase in our sales confirms the loyalty of our customers and the strength of the BMW and MINI brands. Not only did we record market growth but also outperformed our two main competitors in the luxury car segment. The launch of our flagship 7 Series model, which was our best-selling car in 2009 with a threefold increase in sales, helped us achieve this performance and effectively weather the challenging market conditions. Our BMW X5 and X6 models also performed particularly well. We look forward to continuing this success in 2010.”

Another area of business that delivered strong growth was BMW Premium Selection, the company’s approved used-car programme, which achieved an increase of 54% in Bahrain. Overall BMW Premium Selection sales across the Middle East were up 25% in the eight markets that offer the programme.

Yates added: “We anticipate some of the challenges faced in 2009 will remain, but are confident that Euro Motors is in a strong position to achieve growth during 2010. We have five new models to launch in Bahrain during the first five months of the year: two ActiveHybrids, the new BMW 5 Series, Gran Turismo and BMW X1. We are confident that these new models will have a positive affect on 2010 sales and our brands will maintain their strength in the market.”

Overall, the BMW Group Middle East ended 2009 with a moderate 9% decrease in sales compared to 2008. Despite the premium automotive sector being down 25%, the BMW brand managed to gain a 4% increase in market share against its core competitors, with a total of 14,557 BMW and MINI vehicles sold across 14 Middle East markets.

26.01.2010

Following the 2010 red dot design award, the BMW 5 Series Sedan also takes the 2011 prize from the German Design Council.

Munich. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan has won Silver in the 2011 Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany, presented annually by the German Design Council. The country’s most prestigious prize for product design is one of several honors already bestowed by the Design Council in recognition of the excellence of BMW Group Design. The Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany is sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology and will be presented at a public ceremony in Frankfurt on 11 February 2011.

The presentation forms part of the opening event of Ambient, the world’s biggest trade fair for consumer goods.

Since its launch in 1969, the Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany has been conferred each year on outstanding international achievements in the categories of product and communication design, as well as on a personality from the world of design and on up-and-coming young talent. The winners are chosen by an independent jury consisting of ten representatives from industry, academia, design and the media, who are appointed by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. The selection criteria for the design award are rigorous: all entries must already have received a national or international award and must embody trends and developments with a defining impact on future design. A further entry criterion is the nomination by the Trade and Industry Ministries and Senators of the federal states or by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

The design of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan deftly translates the vehicle’s attributes into an authentic formal language. Sheer presence and stylish elegance lend expression to the Sedan’s premium quality and outstanding ride comfort. Its sporty driving characteristics are reflected in the dynamic lines of its bodywork and the overall impression is that of a thoroughly athletic automobile.

The Superior aesthetics of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan are also conveyed by its perfectly balanced proportions and meticulously executed details.

The unique quality of BMW Group Design has already been recognised several times over by the Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany. In 2010 this “prize of prizes” went to the Kinetic Sculpture of the BMW Museum (Gold), in 2009 it was awarded to the BMW HP2 Sport motorcycle (Silver), in 2008 to the BMW G650 Xcountry motorcycle (Gold), and in 2007 to the BMW Cruise Bike (Silver).

For the new BMW 5 Series Sedan this is not the first award of the year: in 2010 its exceptional design already resoundingly persuaded the jury of the internationally renowned red dot awards.

03.11.2010

Munich. By launching the new BMW 5 Series Sedan, the German premium automobile manufacturer is setting new standards not only in aesthetics and driving pleasure, but also in safety. This exceptional position has now found renewed and impressive testimony in the US NCAP crash test. The BMW 5 Series Sedan is the first vehicle that was awarded straight away the highest number of points, 5 stars, in the new and considerably more stringent test procedure of the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The same number of points had already been awarded previously to this four door model in the Euro NCAP crash test. Moreover, the BMW 5 Series Sedan ranks among the first winners in Europe that Euro NCAP experts have honoured in addition with a special award, in recognition of its Assist Advanced eCall, an advanced emergency call system with automatic localisation and accident severity detection. In the USA too, the new BMW 5 Series received yet another honour for outstanding passenger protection: the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) voted it the Top Safety Pick on the strength of its top grades in all test categories.

This double award of 5 stars and the additional honours all reflect the outstandingly high safety level of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan that will be meeting the complex requirements on the international autombile markets. As a global provider of premium cars, BMW develops for all of its models fully integrated safety concepts that are not optimised solely for specific test procedures, but whose safety scope and quality provide the basis for excellent results in all relevant crash tests throughout the world. This ensures the maximum of protection not only for the dummy in the laboratory, but also for thevehicle’s occupants in actual traffic conditions when a critical situation arises or a collision is unavoidable.

Following extensive revisions this year, the US NCAP crash test was performed on a total of 33 current models from American, German, and Asian manufacturers. The tests included e.g. a head-on collision with a solid obstacle, two side collisions, and a rollover scenario. The crash test properties are assessed in particular with respect to occupant cell stability, safety equipment scope and effectiveness, and risk of injury to occupants as determined by the sensors fitted on the dummies.

New to the program is a so-called pole side impact, and in addition there was a significant increase in the stringency of thresholds relevant to top score achievability. As one of the consequences, vehicles that had been awarded top marks earlier under the previous test conditions were being downgraded by the NHTSA in some cases to as low as three stars. Whereas in earlier years, up to 90% of all tested vehicles were being awarded five stars, this year saw only two of thirty three models. Solely the new BMW 5 Series Sedan passed the demanding test program straight away with an overall grade of five stars. Another vehicle was likewise honoured with top grades following a second test run with subsequently optimised safety measures, but all other models achieved only two to four stars in the overall assessment.

For the new BMW 5 Series Sedan, the series is continuing the line of outstanding ratings from renowned safety testing institutes. Previously too, in extensive crash tests analogous to the traffic safety administration NHTSA, the US institute IIHS funded by the insurance sector had already awarded top marks to the Sedan for its occupant safety. One special feature of this test program is the lateral impact of a 1.5 t deformable barrier at a particularly high point on the vehicle’s side, simulating thereby a side collision with an SUV. In addition, the IIHS also utilises a roof strength test to investigate the stability of this structure in rollover scenarios. Having achieved the best grade in all test categories, the BMW 5 Series was voted Top Safety Pick.

The IIHS panel classified both the crash test properties and the safety equipment of the Sedan as exemplary. For instance, the crash active headrests fitted as standard prove to be a particularly effective measure for reducing the risk of whiplash injuries in the event of a rear collision. On this point the IIHS confirmed the positive judgment that the seats of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan had already received previously in the Euro NCAP crash test.

In Europe too, the positive ratings reach beyond the overall assessment of 5 stars. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan was the very first vehicle to achieve 100% in the safety equipment category of the Euro NCAP crash test. In the Euro NCAP pedestrian protection category, with a far higher priority than in the US program, the BMW 5 Series could likewise achieve the best score to date. The Sedan’s active engine compartment lid rises automatically during a collision with a pedestrian or cyclist, presenting an enlarged crumple zone for reduced risk of injury.

Moreover, this institution funded by European governments, automobile associations, and insurance companies is expanding its assessment program this year to include for the first time safety relevant technologies that are not being considered yet in the scope of previous crash tests. These innovative safety systems to a stringent test procedure that is intended to verify a perceptible gain in safety for actual accident situations. In the case of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan, this Euro NCAP Advanced Award went to the Assist Advanced eCall, an advanced emergency call system with automatic localisation and accident severity detection by BMW ConnectedDrive. In the event of a collision, this function automatically alerts emergency services and transmits additional data serving to locate the vehicle and assess the potential risk of injury to the occupants.

07.11.2010