BMW makes its Debut in the Roadster Segment in India with the Launch of the New BMW Z4

The new BMW Z4 represents the re-birth of the roadster – powerful and stylish with a modern interpretation. It is the only vehicle in this segment to combine classic roadster proportions with a seating position close to the rear axle, rear-wheel drive and a fully-automatic retractable hardtop. Driving with the roof down, this two-seater offers a refreshingly intense experience of the sunshine and the wind rushing by – and driving with the hardtop closed, it provides all the comfort of a Premium Sports Coupé. The appeal of this two-seater lies in its unique combination of elegance, agility, and supreme comfort.

The new BMW Z4 will be available in the petrol variant – BMW Z4 sDrive35i – and will be available across India at an ex-showroom price of INR 59,00,000 (Ex-showroom price excludes RTO registration charges, tax, insurance, handling charges; Octroi and entry tax if applicable).

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Peter Kronschnabl, President, BMW India said, “The BMW Z4 outlines an expression of joy which epitomizes the qualities of the BMW brand by combining the ultimate driving experience with maximum sporting potential and distinctive design. More than anything the new BMW Z4 is an expression of sheer driving pleasure. With the new BMW Z4, we want to reach out to new target groups in India who appreciate a pure driving experience, high standards of elegance and value, and suitability for everyday driving and comfort.”

Superior style, sophistication and quality, the new BMW Z4 will be available in a range of six paint finishes (Alpine White, Black Sapphire, Deep Sea Blue, Orion Silver, Space Grey, and Titanium Silver) and three upholstery designs (Leather Kansas Black, Leather Kansas Canberra Beige, and Leather Kansas Coral Red).

The new BMW Z4 also comes with the optional Design Pure White package, that features the finest Nappa leather in Ivory White and door inserts in Alcantara. In addition to the six standard exterior colours, Havanna Brown paintwork is also available exclusively in conjunction with the Design Pure White trim, which brings the unique character of the new BMW Z4 Roadster to the fore.

The new BMW Z4

The contemporary styling of the new BMW Z4 Roadster, with its flattened, athletic-looking rear, wide track and flared wheel arches ensures the car is immediately recognizable on the road, and emphasizes its power. The long bonnet slopes slightly downwards to the upright kidney grille, giving it a dynamic sense of purpose even when stationary. The styling of the new BMW Z4 Roadster is a visual expression of what the car is capable of – which is just how a roadster should be.

With a long bonnet, low, set-back seating position and low belt line, the new BMW Z4 is the only car to combine classic roadster proportions with a retractable hardtop. When the roof is up, its coupé-style lines and the unmistakable BMW Hofmeister kink give the new BMW Z4 Roadster an elegant look. When it is down, the hardtop integrates seamlessly into the flattened, gently sloping rear, so you’d hardly know it’s even there. The two-part retractable roof features a lightweight, aluminium shell design, and opens and closes in approximately 20 seconds.

The six-cylinder in-line petrol engine has a capacity of three litres, and features Twin Turbo technology, High Precision Injection and an all-aluminium crankcase.

The BMW Z4 sDrive35i has a newly developed seven-speed sports automatic transmission, featuring double-clutch technology with which it accelerates to 100 km/h within just 5.1 seconds with a maximum output of 225 kW/306 hp at 5,800 rpm. This supreme performance then continues all the way to 250 km/h where the speed of the car is limited by electronic control.

The new BMW Z4 is the only vehicle on the market today that fully embodies the roadster concept while offering strikingly stylish design. The BMW Z4 has succeeded in delivering an unheard-of level of comfort and functionality for a vehicle of this class, creating a dream car that combines a high level of practicality with a driving experience which no competitor even comes close to.

BMW India

Headquartered in Gurgaon (National Capital Region) BMW India is a 100% subsidiary of the BMW Group. The initial investment in India is 1.1 billion Indian Rupees.

The wide range of BMW activities in India include the establishment of a production plant in Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and development of a dealer organisation across major metropolitan centres of the country.

In medium term, BMW India has employed around 200 people; up to 600 additional jobs have been created in the dealer and service network.

The BMW Plant Chennai produces the BMW 3 Series and BMW 5 Series Sedans in petrol and diesel variants and has a capacity to produce 3000 units per year on a single shift basis.

Presently, BMW India is present at 16 locations in the Indian market; BMW Studio (New Delhi), Deutschen Motoren (New Delhi), Deutschen Motoren (West Delhi), Bird Automotive (Gurgaon, NCR), Navnit Motors (Mumbai), Infinity Cars (South Mumbai), Krishna Automobiles (Chandigarh), Navnit Motors (Bangalore), Delta Motors (Hyderabad), Kun Exclusive (Chennai), Bavaria Motors (Pune), OSL Prestige (Kolkata), Parsoli Motors (Ahmedabad), Platino Classic (Kochi), Kun Exclusive (Coimbatore) and Sanghi Classic (Jaipur).

BMW dealerships presently display the BMW 3 Series and BMW 5 Series that are produced at the BMW Plant Chennai. BMW dealerships also display the BMW 6 Series, BMW 7 Series, BMW X3, the BMW X5, BMW X6 and the BMW Z4 which are available in the country as CBU’s (completely built-up units). The BMW M Cars, BMW 6 Series Individual and BMW 7 Series Individual can also be ordered as CBU’s at BMW India dealerships.

BMW, Audi race to take on Merc

The battle for the top spot in the country's top of the line luxury car segment is getting more intense and Mercedes Benz's near ten-year-old stranglehold in the market is under serious threat.

While BMW is the odds on favourite having already steered ahead in the first quarter of this fiscal, Audi has emerged as the dark horse in the fight. By the end of last fiscal (2008-09) in March, Mercedes Benz India held on to its leadership position selling 3,537 cars. But the signs of a change in the pecking order were there with BMW exceeding its own target and also selling more than 3,000 cars in the year.

"This market is already challenging and without doubt the competition is getting more and more intense," said Peter Kronschnabl, president BMW India. The three German companies are now racing against each other to expand their presence in the hinterland."Our involvement with tier II cities is growing at a fast pace and we are confident that these cities reflect the future growth pockets and offer good potential. We investing Rs 150 crore to expand to new cities as also to upgrade our existing network," said Dr Wilfried Aulbur, MD and CEO, Mercedes Benz India.

X6 - BMW's Macho Machine

BMW X6, a Sport Activity Vehicle (SAV) from the German premium car manufacturer BMW has been pulling a lot of eyes in India recently. This car is imported in India as a Completely Built Unit (CBU). The BMW X6 comes in two versions the X6 xDrive50i in petrol and the X6 xDrive30d in diesel.
The X6 is world’s first Sports Activity Coupé to be equipped with BMW Dynamic Performance Control that imbues it with excellent driving dynamics. This BMW is equipped with a twin-turbo direct injection V8.
The new BMW X6 has all the agility and elegance of a coupé plus the impressive versatility of a SAV. The car has been named as Sports Activity Coupe as it ensures all the comfort and luxury of the coupe. This seven-seater coupe also provides generous spacing for both the driver and front
passenger.
This luxury SAV offers a unique synthesis of exclusive luxury, sporting dynamics, and powerful style. With a wide range of colors and materials, the BMW X6 really highlight its sporting character to suit individual style and personality. The petrol variant of the BMW X6 is priced at Rs. 83 Lakh while
the diesel is available at Rs. 65 Lakh.
The coupe X6 can be ordered across all 13 BMW dealerships in India. The German car giant has deferred the launch of its luxury hatchback the Mini in India till next year. BMW 7 series, 3 series and X3 are the other models of the world’s largest premium car make that are sold in India.

BMW, Audi race to take on Merc

The battle for the top spot in the country's top of the line luxury car segment is getting more intense and Mercedes Benz's near ten-year-old stranglehold in the market is under serious threat.

While BMW is the odds on favourite having already steered ahead in the first quarter of this fiscal, Audi has emerged as the dark horse in the fight. By the end of last fiscal (2008-09) in March, Mercedes Benz India held on to its leadership position selling 3,537 cars. But the signs of a change in the pecking order were there with BMW exceeding its own target and also selling more than 3,000 cars in the year.

"This market is already challenging and without doubt the competition is getting more and more intense," said Peter Kronschnabl, president BMW India. The three German companies are now racing against each other to expand their presence in the hinterland."Our involvement with tier II cities is growing at a fast pace and we are confident that these cities reflect the future growth pockets and offer good potential. We investing Rs 150 crore to expand to new cities as also to upgrade our existing network," said Dr Wilfried Aulbur, MD and CEO, Mercedes Benz India.

BMW zips past Mercedes in India's luxury car market

For the first time ever, luxury marque Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, better known as BMW, has overtaken arch rival Mercedes Benz in terms of sales in India, taking the fight for supremacy in the luxury car segment to a new level.

BMW sold 270 cars and sports utility vehicles (SUV) or three times the total number of cars sold by Mercedes Benz, which stood at 89 units in January. Officials from both the companies say that 2009 will be the year, which would clearly define whether the generational domination of the three pointed star will be lost to BMW.

While announcing the launch of the X6 model (a luxury SUV) Peter Kronschnabl, president, BMW India said, "We were able to take the lead in January thanks to the success of the 3 and 5-Series. Around April we will get a clearer picture of market demand and will be in a better position to predict on following months."

Although sales in 2008 at 2,908 units was the best for BMW so far in India, it was still 24.5 per cent short of Mercedes tally of 3,621 units.

However, in the current financial year BMW has sold 994 units of the 5 and 6 Series sedans as compared to 490 units sold during the same period the previous year. Both models are in the range of Rs 40 lakh to Rs 85.5 lakh.

Meanwhile, Mercedes saw a rise of only 9 per cent in sales of the E Class at 883 units as against 810 units in the same period.

"Our customers are not that different from our competitors but the key to our success lies in the fact that we have been able to create the environment at our dealerships, service points, buying experience, which is on par with our global standards. Most of our 3-Series customers are young professional", added Kronschnabl.

The company launched three models in one month (January) including the new 7-Series, new 3-Series and the diesel variant of X3. The new luxury SUV X6, launched today is priced at Rs 65.9 lakh for the diesel variant and Rs 82.9 lakh for the petrol model.

According to industry experts the market for luxury cars expanded at a much faster rate than anticipated in 2008, however due to the on-going economic crisis the growth will be subdued this year.

Despite this luxury car makers are confident that the market will grow to 9,500 units by the end of next year from 7,500 units sold last year.

Sales for BMW began to show an upsurge ever since the company started local assembly of the 3-Series and 5-Series sedan in the Chennai plant from March 2007, thus making it substantially cheaper than their imported counterparts.

Mercedes Benz, meanwhile has decided to postpone the launch of the all-new E Class due to some technical glitches. Sources say that the launch is hampered due a delay in converting the model into a right-hand drive vehicle for markets like India.

BMW however, will go ahead with one more launch, which company officials say will not be a sedan, perhaps by the middle of this year.

Both companies have made special arrangements for financing their cars through tie-ups with banks and also through in-house financing arms. Although BMW has withdrawn the zero per cent interest rate offer, officials say that the company is working on different concepts along with the dealers.

BMW 7 Series in India

BMW is working on new technologies to bring the best automobiles in India. The latest BMW 7 Series model, BMW 730d is an outcome of such technologies. The new 730D boasts of much more comfortable ride than before and much safer as well. The luxury car buyers in India are all set to get good value for money for their cars as they come laden with new technologies at the same price. BMW has launched only 750Li so far in India. It is yet to launch 730D and 740Li in the country. The 750Li and the 740Li are the longer wheelbase versions of the 750i and the 740i models.

The new 730d coming to India has more elegant style as compared to its predecessor that flaunted a sporty look in the western world. The features have been considerably toned down looking the customer likings in India. The company has specifically kept in mind the choices of the elite and selective class buyers who prefer the rear-seat comfort. The longer wheel base segment and rear seat comforts and accessories have been specifically designed keeping in these customer demands in mind.


The new BMW 7 Series models are all geared up to change the “driver’s cars” concept as is normally perceived about the BMW cars. It intends to compete head-on with Mercedes Benz S-class in the luxury car segment.