BMW Group Sales Reach All-Time High In June 2011
Editor’s Note :
It certainly looks to be a bumper year for the premium brands in Malaysia, as both Mercedes-Benz Malaysia and BMW Malaysia announce their first half year results. It seems to indicate that Malaysian buying power at the top end of the price spectrum remains strong. The first announcement was made by Mercedes-Benz Malaysia yesterday (12 July 2011), followed by BMW Malaysia’s announcement today.
Mercedes-Benz introduced a face-lifted version of its C Class sedan with new features including a 7-speed gearbox for the first time in the C200 model – the C Class will be officially launched at the end of the month, and at least another two new models will be introduced before the end of the year.
BMW, on the other hand, are due to introduce the new BMW 3 Series, and the base 2.0 litre model is quite exciting, being powered by a 2.0 litre turbo charged engine capable of making 240 horsepower.
Healthy competition is always good for the consumer – we get better choices of products, and more competitive prices. Let the games begin!
The news release from BMW Malaysia is re-produced below:-
Premium automaker records a total of 2785 passenger vehicle deliveries in Malaysia for the first six months of 2011
Cyberjaya, 13 July 2011 – Building on the steady growth of sales across all brands – BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad over the past few months, BMW Group Malaysia today announced that the organization recently achieved its highest ever monthly sales figures both globally and within the Malaysian market, for month of June.
For the month of June, the BMW Group delivered a total of 165,855 BMW (including BMW Motorrad), MINI and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles globally, representing a 15.9% growth over the past year. The strong performance in June was reflective of a bullish first six months for BMW, which with a total of 833,366 vehicles sold in 2011, represents a growth of 19.7% or more than 137,000 over the past six months.
Here in Malaysia, BMW’s strong global performance was also reflected by the delivery of 552 vehicles from the brands under the BMW Group to discerning owners throughout the nation; a sizeable increase of over 69% over the 326 vehicles sold in June 2010 and surpassing the 500 vehicle-per-month mark for the first time in the history of BMW Group Malaysia
The first half performance of BMW Group Malaysia in 2011, during which 2785 vehicles were sold also marks an increase of 26.8% over 2010 figures, which in itself was part of a record-breaking year for the organization.
Announcing the performance result, Mr. Geoffrey Briscoe, Managing Director, BMW Group Malaysia said, “These record sales figures reflect the strong demand for BMW, BMW Motorrad and MINI vehicles, both globally and right here in Malaysia. Whether seen from a macro or micro standpoint, both these milestones are testament to the unsurpassed innovation, performance, efficiency and all-round desirability of the brands under the BMW Group.”
Mr. Briscoe further added that aside from registering strong performances for the current variants of the BMW 5 Series and BMW 3 Series, the stellar performance from January-June 2011 was also achieved through the continued assembly of popular BMW models at the Kulim BMW plant and the increasing popularity of BMW’s Advanced Diesel models.
In terms of business strategy, BMW Group Malaysia’s ongoing commitment towards introducing BMW EfficientDynamics technologies in its entire product range, as well as the introduction of additional BMW Advanced Diesel models, has also led to the organisation becoming the automotive premium segment leader in emission standards whilst continuing to improve on vehicle driving dynamics and performance.
BMW’s Advanced Diesel engines provide up to 20% more horsepower, 75% more torque and up to 30% efficiency in fuel consumption compared to its petrol equivalent, whilst at the same time also generating 20% less carbon dioxide (CO2) thus significantly reducing the amount of harmful emissions introduced to the environment.
With the growing level of understanding and appreciation amongst customers around the importance of emission reduction and improved efficiency standards, it then comes as no small surprise that BMW Advanced Diesel Models have started contributing more than 15% of total BMW vehicles sold in May and June 2011, up from less than 5% in the same period of 2010.
“We are undoubtedly the most sustainable car company in the world so it is only natural that our BMW EfficientDynamics strategy takes off here in Malaysia as well. As the market leader in diesel technology, we are looking to continue to produce and introduce vehicles that use the latest in clean technologies for a cleaner, more fuel efficient drive that has no compromise in performance” said Briscoe.
Another of BMW’s key business strategies is the BMW ConnectedDrive, which utilizes leading-edge innovative technology to better connect users with BMW vehicles and BMW vehicles with the rest of the world. With a full range of features encompassing the main themes of Safety, Convenience and Infotainment, BMW ConnectedDrive has consistently developed the technology of tomorrow for the vehicles of today.
Mr. Briscoe also added that as a leading key differentiator in the automotive industry, the innovation and technological advantage of BMW ConnectedDrive has also played a significant role in the continued success of the BMW brand.
Reflective of BMW’s strong global and local performance, a documentary from business news channel CNBC called “BMW: A Driving Obsession” will premiere on 14 July 2011, taking viewers behind the scenes to see just what makes this brand a global luxury powerhouse and one of the most valuable brands in the world; whether it’s the BMW Tech Center where engineers actualise the next generation of driving machines, BMW’s numerous cultural projects including the legendary BMW Art Cars or the premier jewel of the BMW crown, Rolls-Royce.
Be sure to catch this insightful documentary on CNBC (Astro Channel 518) on 14 July 2011, 5pm with repeats at the following timeslots: –
• Saturday, 16 July 2011 at 10 pm
• Sunday, 17 July 2011 at 2 am
• Monday, 18 July 2011 at 4 am
