BMW and the M...past, present, and future, what does it mean to you.

Well HOH i like BMW´s especially the pre bangle ones..and i still like a few of the post bangle ones..

And as far as the M7 goes..i only said that it would be better to have that than a SUV..atleast they could showcase magic on that platform..
I mean the reason for not making it according to the BMW squad was that it doesent fit the philosophy..
Now that they have thrown the philosophy where the sun doesent shine..
Why not an M7 rather than a SUV..???
They could do M7 and X6 M.. rather than the X5

I do agree with you to some point here, but the main point of X5M/X6M is that they found a good market the Middle East, they will sell and that what BMW wants to make money on these cars.

The main reason BMW is not offering an M7 its will dilute the purpose of Alpina B7 and Alpina will be no longer able to sell their cars people would choose the M over the Alpina any time and this also the case of the B5 or the B3 you rarely see any..IMO..

^The M7 would sell like hot cakes in middle east..

And i dont really think they care that much about alpina

A M7 would sell really bad - why? because people rather spend their money on a s63, S600,s65. No point selling a car if it dont get any money back.

You quite right but in Middle East specially in that segment i think the mercedes AMG is the choice..

hmmm...E90/91M3 reviews, have we forgotten all the initial reviews.
On the final analysis, the M3 turned to be true masterpiece, so I won't put much faith on their opinions until I get to drive it.

I have an e90 M3 and the engine sure is a thru masterpiece. But at more than 1600kg it is just an other heavy truck from bmw.

Which is nice for daily fun drive. But attacking some corners the rear and front tires scream for help like there is no tommorow. The 1600kg is just to much for them.

An M3 should be 1300kg or less. But this isn t gonna happen because a 3 series is an old 5 series. There is just to much metal. That s why the 1 series is the new driving machine now if only the guys at ///M get out of the winter sleep and build us a 1 series ///M with high rev 6 cil screamer. I sell my E90 M3 cruiseship without a blink of an eye for that.

Well now thats up to how great a product they make and how they promote it..
I still belive a M7 would be faar more intersting than 2 SUV´s..
1 SUV one LImo.. is the way to go.. if you are abandoning the so called M philosophy

lol, ***????? Your newfound hate towards BMW is so funny to read

Having left F1 and no focusing on SUVs and MPV, Audi overtaking BMW is imminent as Audi have enjoyed immense success with the R8 and is successful in Le Mans and DTM. BMW's sports image is deteriorating, especially when the competitors are pushing out highly desirable R8 V10 and SLS. There is no exciting car that draws people into BMW dealers.

Maybe a new X7 M...

M was an exclusive brand caracterised by true integrity, it was technicaly superior and it was special, now it's becoming just an other AMG.

It's an SUV, not a sports car.

The M3 is a top seller but is no longer the default choice as competitors have to some extent caught up. Both Mercedes and Audi have compelling options, I see the RS4 regularly. Neither the M5 is the default choice any longer -- we're not living in year 2001. Today Jaguar, Porsche, Audi and Mercedes have large sized saloons which rival the M5 both in performance and in value.

No exiting cars because you hate BMW.
"Immense success"??? Come again? They maybe sell 20 per year in a small country like mine. R8 is incredibly expensive.
Focussing on SUV and MPV? Oh, you're such a troll, in-cre-di-ble.

Sorry Hassan if you mean BMW isn't selling because there is no low volume highly exotic car that normal PPL can't afford then I think you'r mistaken. BUT if you want a normal car with some flavour of sportiness BMW is still your first option. As Eni and many said, such car (R8 competitor - SLS ) would only boost BMWs image, while it is exciting for us car enthusiasts, it make little sense for BoM of BMW.

In almost all mainstreem categories BMW is still No.1 when it comes to driving dynamic. This what made BMW a BMW, now lacking the CSL and exotic car wouldn't do much in terms of sales but it will help us fans to restore our love to the "ultimate driving machine".

Exactly. First up is the F10 5er, which will set all kinds of new driving standards. E60 will feel like a fat heavy pig compared to it.

Having left F1 and no focusing on SUVs and MPV,

Yes we left F1 and if the rumour according to the German media is to be believed we are not the only ones who discussed our future in F1 .
F1 might be good for their marketing terms but financially no and that is why the future of mercedes F1 will remain in rumourville for the forseeable future.

Yes but cars like the 5er Gran Turismo are very significant also the X models are selling well especially where you are in the UK where we are getting orders daily.

Audi's success is down to an expansive sharing platform philosophy and parts bin. Audi can make the R8 because of it's dependence on sharing Lamborghini platforms and engines. Audi has been successful in Le Mans and DTM due to hard work and patience , BMW have been there before and are contemplating a DTM return.

Why does an exciting car have to come at such a high premium and then only showcased by the wealthy in Arab countries on the streets of London?

BMW's new path is currently on it's compact segment where it will bring back to basics performance in the compact segment. Downsizing is the name of strategy and why can you not have exciting lightweight cars that are focused on performance using the same materials at a fraction of the cost.?
Not everyone can afford the SLS but a lot more could afford a Z2 Coupe whereas the SLS would outclass it in Performance of course it's appealing to peoples pockets by offering something small compact and sporty that will return the BMW image the affinity it had by cars such as the great driving and enthusiast following from the 2002 and E30 M3.
The BMW Board have given the 1er Supersports , Z2 Roadster and Coupe a Target weight of 1000kg.

Next year is very important for BMW because of the new 5er and lets look at the specifics , The hardening process that makes the 5er GT lighter and stronger will be applied to the next 5er so the incoming car will not have such a greater weight gain as expected.
Chassis engineers are still perfecting some areas but as of now the car out drives and out handles it's core competition in the handling class.
BMW will use the time between now and launch to perfect everything within the car , extensive quality control continues as does the feel of solidity - BMW board members were unhappy with a chosen material for some components that they demanded an increase in quality.

As for Audi to pass BMW will take a lot of product to do so. The next A8 seems to have missed the idea that customers like something new in the segment and has concentrated on a tried and tested formula in which there are cars available and coming that will make it look dated and unexciting when it is launched. Although I have seen comments that Audi are sticking to same BMW formula as BMW done one car in each size. I would like to remind you that BMW's position as the worlds no 1 luxury car maker came at the time after BMW instigated it's new design philosophy. If Audi are to do the same thay have to spread their design language , The A8 could have been the perfect candidate for that but they chose not to.

But there is an even bigger threat happening within the group and the news in todays business section provides the rumour that VW are pushing ahead with a next generation Phaeton at the behest of Herr Piech to be based off the A8 platform and spaceframe like the Bentley... and apply brand (here...) and will also come in a coupe if the rumours to be believed a car that VW say will be like a VW Phaeton version of the Panamera (dont they have one already?) similar to the Original VW Concept D. Which given the current Phaeton and A8 a competitive strip down showed that the Phaeton was leagues ahead in quality than the A8.
T.

I heard the rumour of 1000kg often.

I am curious about this to happen.

Bmw should not make cars like M3 cabrio X5M X6M under the ///M motorsport name.

Bmw should make a performance line where you can bring cars like the X5 M etc.
///M Motorsport should bring only cars with a motorsport hart and nothing else.

Unlike BMW, Mercedes have had a majorly successful chapter in F1 which has riased the brand profile and attracted people to the brand. Their engine is powering the Mclaren and Brawn cars. Mercedes's are doing a hella good job in F1 and I wouldn't count on them throwing away several decades of work just because of a recession.

F1 is expensive, there is no question about that but if victories come your way, they result in max brand exposure and press that would cost colossal amounts of money to pay for through normal channels of advertising. So in the end, F1 is worth it. Ferrari are earning more money selling merchandise then they do from manufacturing cars.

BMW didn't quite F1 because it's expensive. They left because the failed to deliver. Period. Everything else is just losers talk.

I would be happy if you could enlighten me on why BMW is the no.1 luxury car maker?

F1 or for that matter any racing series becomes expensive if you are not doing too well. That is why BMW left F1. I bet they wouldn't have left if they were winning. And that is why MB left Le Mans too at the end of 99. No one is above that, probably with the exception of Ferrari, which will probably never leave F1.