[kutch]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...g&refer=europe


What does it all mean Alfie?

[Brookside]

This is a good article but should have gone into more depth about what BMW's future prospects are...although they do cite the introduction of the 1-er, the mainline 3/5/7/Z series, despite some facelifts and engine upgrades, and the intro of the ZCoupe, all are beginning to look long in the tooth.

BMW has got to be looking at some long range strategies- anticipate market trends and beat the competition to production with compelling models.
A lot is riding on the 1-er in terms of perception of BMW's ability to influence and mirror contemporary tastes - will their gamble payoff or miss the mark? Judging from the response this site is getting the Leipzig plant will be going 24/7.:wink::wink:

[ibeam81]

Thanks for the info Kutch. The coming years will be interesting for BMW. In the past 40 years BMW has gone from a fairly small niche manufacturer to a global juggernaut.

I agree that there is a lot riding on the 1er and I suspect that the new diesels will also play a major role in BMW's future. The 1er is already BMW's volume leader and diesels have been equally successful, so they have a proven track record in the rest of the world. However, it remains to be seen how successful the 1er and diesels will be in the US market.

When everyting is said and done I don't think that I would be sticking my neck out to predict that BMW will be fine and that the 1er coupe will be a hit. :roundel:

[imported_MPower]

Not much of a story if you ask me. BMW's profits for this quarter are still expected to be greater than $1 billion and those numbers, as the article rightly points out, are indicative of high R&D costs for the all-new platforms and models. With revenue totaling $14 billion, BMW's financial future should be good for the next few years at least.