[allinon72]

I went to the Indy Auto Show today and man what a disappointment from BMW. Granted, this show does not compare to the big ones in LA or Detroit, but the BMW space was BY FAR the worst effort of any automaker. No stage, no kiosks, no M cars, just poorly optioned dealer cars. Seriously, they took 10 cars from dealerships, lined them up, and called it a day. Acura had an NSX, Lexus had several F cars, Alfa had a Giulia, but BMW couldn't be bothered to show up with a single M car.

SHAME!

[uniqueMR]

Indy Auto Show: run by the Indianapolis Automobile Trade Association - an organization of 80 franchised new car and truck dealers in the Greater Indianapolis area. (According to their web site).

That's why

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by uniqueMR

Indy Auto Show: run by the Indianapolis Automobile Trade Association - an organization of 80 franchised new car and truck dealers in the Greater Indianapolis area. (According to their web site).

That's why

Doesn't explain why all the other booths looked like the Taj Mahal while the BMW booth looked like a rest stop.

[allinon72]

The Ford booth had a god damn AI robot named Hank for God's sake!

[tock172]

BMW actually pulled out of the San Diego auto show a few years back. As far as I know the show is put on by the dealer association and participation was at one of our local dealership's discretion.

Nevertheless, BMW stole the show in LA this year. They debuted something like 9 vehicles at their press event and started with a completely blank stage. The i8 Roadster, M3 CS, G90 M5, i8, X7 and Vision concepts were all there.

[Bobby_Drake]

disappointing that no BMW presence at San Diego International autoshow

[Dirty Harry]

San Diego auto show was pretty bad this year. No BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Cadillac, and Tesla.

[elias]

Originally Posted by Dirty Harry

San Diego auto show was pretty bad this year. No BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Cadillac, and Tesla.

Whats the point in attending with all those no shows!

[turboawd]

i guess nowadays, you can see all future cars online.
bmw display at chicago auto show last year was bad also.

[Law]

Originally Posted by tock172

Nevertheless, BMW stole the show in LA this year. They debuted something like 9 vehicles at their press event and started with a completely blank stage. The i8 Roadster, M3 CS, G90 M5, i8, X7 and Vision concepts were all there.

The debuts are exciting but BMW have become lazy with the quality of presentation and have completely cut out the owners at the LA Auto Show.
They've been using the same booth setup for at least the last 3 years that I can remember. It's not a bad setup, but its the cost cutting/negligence of owners that's a problem.
Don't have an imposing big upstairs lounge area if it's going to be sealed off to the public and no longer relevant to the show.

Alas, years ago, the upstairs level was an "Owner's Lounge" complete with refreshments and small snacks (i.e., cookies, chips).
The owner presents his key to the BMW employee at the stairs and walks up the staircase.
The upstairs area was L-shaped; there was interior seating by the "bar"/refreshments counter with a full view of the show downstairs as well as an open air, balcony-type seating outside perpendicular to that.
Next to the tables outside at the very edge, BMW would bring one race-car each year for display. Owners could enjoy their refreshments while also admiring the race car and enjoying the view of the show.



The year was 2015. BMW brought the #25 Z4 GTLM.
It's not much, maybe a cookie and a Coke and a photo op with a BMW factory race-car, but for BMW fans, it's a small glimpse into the Welt experience, a small token of appreciation for fans. You get the sense that someone up in corporate at a meeting thought it was a cool thing to do for BMW enthusiasts.
And that person would be right. It was cool, people took it all in: taking photos, admiring the details ("Wow, look at the battle scars on bumper!")
It was a nice experience as a BMW fan, owner, and enthusiast.



2016. BMW brought BMW Classic's Alpina 2002ti.
Now, this is where they decided to cut some costs.
No snacks, no refreshments but hey, at least I get "exclusive" access to a BMW factory race-car and a nice view. I'll take that.



2017. BMW brought Bill Auberlen's #25 M6 GTLM
How exciting is that. The car that saw Bill's 400th start and the last M6 GTLM to race, and I get to view it up close in person, or so I thought.
Apparently, I learned that the upstairs "area" was no longer opened to the public, including BMW owners. I'm not sure if press was allowed up there, but the "owner's lounge" is now defunct.
This is the best view that one can get now.


Why have a huge lounge area if it's going to be sealed off to owners?
Why bring your pride and joy from BMW Motorsport or BMW Classic only to have visitors glance at the side-profile from 20 feet away?

When even the Honda booth has an owner's area and other manufacturers are proudly showcasing their race-cars where it can actually be seen, one starts to wonder about BMW's priorities.

[xlover]

BMW also skipping Boston show, couple years in a row now. Disappointing.

[tock172]

Originally Posted by Law

2017. BMW brought Bill Auberlen's #25 M6 GTLM
How exciting is that. The car that saw Bill's 400th start and the last M6 GTLM to race, and I get to view it up close in person, or so I thought.
Apparently, I learned that the upstairs "area" was no longer opened to the public, including BMW owners. I'm not sure if press was allowed up there, but the "owner's lounge" is now defunct.
This is the best view that one can get now.


Why have a huge lounge area if it's going to be sealed off to owners?
Why bring your pride and joy from BMW Motorsport or BMW Classic only to have visitors glance at the side-profile from 20 feet away?

I actually ended up spending a few hours in that lounge area, eating cookies and drinking coffee. Snapped a few shots of Auberlen's M6 GTLM. It has lots of character, as you can see.

It should be noted that I am press, however, so my experience is different than that of the general public. I was there during press week as well, which occurs the week prior to the show opening to the public.

[ted99]

The BMW stand at the Houston show is run by the dealers--really not worth the time to see. Other Mfg's are present at this "second tier, on it's way to third tier" show. The only reason I go is because my CA give me "free" tickets and I can see what other mfg's are offering in one place. I'd never pay for this show.

[Law]

Originally Posted by tock172

I actually ended up spending a few hours in that lounge area, eating cookies and drinking coffee. Snapped a few shots of Auberlen's M6 GTLM. It has lots of character, as you can see.

It should be noted that I am press, however, so my experience is different than that of the general public. I was there during press week as well, which occurs the week prior to the show opening to the public.

My point is most BMW owners are not Press.
The entire area was closed off to the public, including BMW owners, which wasn't the case before.

[DETRoadster]

They phoned it in on the Seattle show this year. Same 7 or 8 cars this year that they had last year. WTF?! I'm not talking same models, I'm talking the same exact cars. I pulled up photos on my phone from last year. Same cars, same paint, even the same parking spots/arrangement. Super lame.

[Clark_Kent]

Don't feel too bad. BMW didn't even bother showing up to the Auto Show in Atlanta a couple of years back.

[MalibuBimmer]

The L.A. Show this year was, to use Trump's words, a shithole. No Ferrari, Lamborghini, Rolls or Bentley. BMW and Mercedes were barely making the effort. The concept BMW 8 series and Z4 weren't even there.

And this is L.A., the car capital of the universe.

[yco]

i guess there are some other reasons for it cause BMW sells almost half of the all M cars in USA.. its really really hard to see a 60 year old woman drives an M3 in Europe but you can see that in states.. its a market that M cant miss..

[minn19]

They didn’t show up last year to the Minneapolis on either. I know not high on the list of important auto shows, but most every other main stream manufacturer did. Also with some of higher end brands as will via the the dealers in town.

[x5mannn]

Originally Posted by minn19

They didn’t show up last year to the Minneapolis on either. I know not high on the list of important auto shows, but most every other main stream manufacturer did. Also with some of higher end brands as will via the the dealers in town.

BMW is not at Boston show this weekend but Mini and RR are

[SCOTT26]

Originally Posted by x5mannn

BMW is not at Boston show this weekend but Mini and RR are

Because they are here.

[minn19]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

Because they are here.