Hot! BMW AG: What's Next
- Thread starter mini_cooper4
- Start date
Latest news, trending discussions, reviews, and major updates
hovabongZA
Tire Trailblazer
- Messages
- 6,273
460hp
- Messages
- 19,838
- Name
- Martin
Please continue discussion on the M4 CS here: OFFICIAL - 2017 BMW M4 CS
chonkoa
Aerodynamic Artisan
- Messages
- 3,944
I am sure they have this in mind.Again
BMW Might Build A Hybrid Hypercar To Compete With Mercedes
nikola1984
Kraftkurve King
- Messages
- 1,512
Coming up.
- Messages
- 11,482
- Name
- Matt
Again
BMW Might Build A Hybrid Hypercar To Compete With Mercedes
Is this really news? Nothing against you posting it @maragulon, but what did the article writers think they were telling us?
NEWS FLASH: CAR COMPANY WITHOUT HYPERCAR, STILL DOESN'T HAVE HYPER CAR.... NOW PLEASE SIGN UP SO WE CAN SELL ON YOUR CLICKS AND INFO.
EnI
Piston Pioneer
- Messages
- 14,072
Emotional mobility is OK ... The problem is that eg. latest BMW products (1er hatch, 2er Active Tourer, 2er Gran Tourer, new 7er, new 5er etc etc) just don't generate ANY emotions whatsoever! They just ARE ... there. OK, there are Ms, and BMWis ... but's that's it.
Core models need some kick ... just like in Bangle times. They were not the most beautiful creatures on the roads, but they did stir emotions! positive or negatives ... People were excited about BMW cars. Today they just aren't. Most BMW products are OK but hardly exciting anymore. At least design / styling should be exciting even if the driving dynamics (eg of a minivan etc) isn't.
The core line products are just too vanilla. BMW, add some magic dust sprinkles, please!!!
Core models need some kick ... just like in Bangle times. They were not the most beautiful creatures on the roads, but they did stir emotions! positive or negatives ... People were excited about BMW cars. Today they just aren't. Most BMW products are OK but hardly exciting anymore. At least design / styling should be exciting even if the driving dynamics (eg of a minivan etc) isn't.
The core line products are just too vanilla. BMW, add some magic dust sprinkles, please!!!
nikola1984
Kraftkurve King
- Messages
- 1,512
New information: hyper car coming 2080 year. Scott?
chonkoa
Aerodynamic Artisan
- Messages
- 3,944
Sorry brother, what is emotional mobility?
What does it really mean? Let me guess, it is one of those touchy feelings thingy emotional new age thingy. Like a coined phrase from a psychiatric play ground.
Sounds like a pile of coyote poop that isn't worth a crap.
They should stop that mumbo-jumbo crap and focus on making cars people like.
CrunchSlaughtered
RPM Ruler
- Messages
- 7,390
D
Deleted member 25
Guest
Meanwhile, at the BMW Motorrad realm, the guys showed this.
The 2017 BMW HP4 RACE Is The Bike Carbon Fiber Dreams Are Made Of
The 2017 BMW HP4 RACE Is The Bike Carbon Fiber Dreams Are Made Of
Cashmere
RPM Ruler
- Messages
- 7,547
BMW uses fear factor to rally staff in move to EVs
April 26, 2017 @ 6:45 am
Elisabeth Behrmann
Bloomberg
MUNICH -- Inside a bright auditorium at an abandoned airfield near Munich, rows of men and women gaze at images flashing by on a giant screen: a Mercedes sedan; Porsche and Jaguar SUVs; the face of Elon Musk. "We're in the midst of an electric assault," the presenter intones as the Tesla chief's photo pops up. "This must be taken very seriously."
The audience is composed of BMW Group employees flown in for a combination pep rally/horror film intended to make them afraid about the future of the industry. The takeaway: The market is shifting in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago, and BMW must adapt. The subtext is a recognition that the company has gone from leader to laggard.
For years, BMW set the benchmark in luxury, but it needs to push to fend off resurgent rivals such as Mercedes-Benz and new competitors like Tesla. "BMW is falling behind in electrics," says Ingo Speich, a fund manager at Union Investment.
Since January, the carmaker has taken 14,000 engineers, marketers, and factory managers, about 10 percent of its workforce through day-long events to prepare them for a time when customers may order a robo-taxi by app instead of buying a car. In a temporary building at a BMW test track, they participate in workshops and discussions of car-sharing apps, laser sensors, and batteries. In the corners, BMW shows off the vehicles it sees as key to its future: a self-driving iNext with a retractable steering wheel; a Rolls-Royce whose roof and sides swing open to allow a comfortable exit; a Mini designed for sharing that changes colors to suit the driver's mood.
"It's easy to fall into a closed way of thinking," says Jutta Schwerdtle, a session leader who works in market research. "This helps push people out of that."
Slow start
The training effort comes amid concerns that CEO Harald Krueger isn't doing enough to address the challenges. Although BMW continues to post record revenue and profits, it lost the sales crown to Mercedes last year, and high-profile executives at the vanguard of new technologies have departed: Two leaders of its electric initiative moved to a Chinese e-car startup, and top designers have decamped for rivals as the German company has become less daring with new models. It's struggled to build interest in a revamped version of its high-end 7-series sedan, and the styling of the 5 series is meek in contrast to an aggressive makeover at Mercedes. "We're either part of this shift, or it goes on without us," says Wolfgang Ober, who presented workshops on ride-hailing giants such as Uber Technologies and China's Didi Chuxing.
BMW was an early convert to electric cars, introducing its first standalone battery-powered model, the i3 compact, in 2013 and the plug-in hybrid i8 coupe a year later. Lately, though, it's focused more on under-the-hood conversions of existing vehicles, and sales of its electrics have trailed the likes of Tesla and the Nissan Leaf. BMW is planning only two new battery-powered cars by the end of the decade, and its first self-driving model isn't due until 2021.
Tesla, which is gearing up to challenge BMW's 3 series with its forthcoming Model 3, already offers "autopilot," and Mercedes this fall will introduce an upgraded S-class sedan that it says can self-navigate anything from country lanes to autobahns at speeds exceeding 200 kph (120 mph).
"BMW has lost its leadership in innovation," says Juergen Pieper, an analyst at Bankhaus Metzler in Frankfurt. "It's not brave enough to get into pioneering projects and do something really new."
iNext
That heightens the importance of the iNext, a low-slung sedan with butterfly doors on view at the pep rally. Under bright spotlights, attendees peer at the prototype, its kidney-shaped grille jutting forward, looking a bit like rabbit teeth. The self-driving electric car will replace the 7 series as the company's flagship in 2021, Krueger said last year. Nonetheless, BMW will rely on the 7 series and other traditional combustion-engined models for many more years to finance the transition.
The rally begins with a recorded presentation from Krueger viewed with virtual-reality goggles, an extravagance intended to stress the importance of adopting new technologies. The virtual Krueger exhorts participants "to put all your effort and energy" into the transformation. After a lunch of smoked haddock, semolina dumplings, and kale, the energy falters. Staffers sitting on unstable foam cubes in a stuffy room for a session on autonomous cars have no questions when question and answer time rolls around, even though their jobs may depend on understanding such systems. Still, Michael Manz, who develops sensors for self-driving cars, says the event is helping him better grasp BMW's mission and created a renewed camaraderie. "We were reminded of what we're trying to achieve," he says, sipping a pomegranate iced tea between sessions. "It gets us focused on where we're going."
http://www.autonews.com/article/201...ses-fear-factor-to-rally-staff-in-move-to-evs
April 26, 2017 @ 6:45 am
Elisabeth Behrmann
Bloomberg
MUNICH -- Inside a bright auditorium at an abandoned airfield near Munich, rows of men and women gaze at images flashing by on a giant screen: a Mercedes sedan; Porsche and Jaguar SUVs; the face of Elon Musk. "We're in the midst of an electric assault," the presenter intones as the Tesla chief's photo pops up. "This must be taken very seriously."
The audience is composed of BMW Group employees flown in for a combination pep rally/horror film intended to make them afraid about the future of the industry. The takeaway: The market is shifting in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago, and BMW must adapt. The subtext is a recognition that the company has gone from leader to laggard.
For years, BMW set the benchmark in luxury, but it needs to push to fend off resurgent rivals such as Mercedes-Benz and new competitors like Tesla. "BMW is falling behind in electrics," says Ingo Speich, a fund manager at Union Investment.
Since January, the carmaker has taken 14,000 engineers, marketers, and factory managers, about 10 percent of its workforce through day-long events to prepare them for a time when customers may order a robo-taxi by app instead of buying a car. In a temporary building at a BMW test track, they participate in workshops and discussions of car-sharing apps, laser sensors, and batteries. In the corners, BMW shows off the vehicles it sees as key to its future: a self-driving iNext with a retractable steering wheel; a Rolls-Royce whose roof and sides swing open to allow a comfortable exit; a Mini designed for sharing that changes colors to suit the driver's mood.
"It's easy to fall into a closed way of thinking," says Jutta Schwerdtle, a session leader who works in market research. "This helps push people out of that."
Slow start
The training effort comes amid concerns that CEO Harald Krueger isn't doing enough to address the challenges. Although BMW continues to post record revenue and profits, it lost the sales crown to Mercedes last year, and high-profile executives at the vanguard of new technologies have departed: Two leaders of its electric initiative moved to a Chinese e-car startup, and top designers have decamped for rivals as the German company has become less daring with new models. It's struggled to build interest in a revamped version of its high-end 7-series sedan, and the styling of the 5 series is meek in contrast to an aggressive makeover at Mercedes. "We're either part of this shift, or it goes on without us," says Wolfgang Ober, who presented workshops on ride-hailing giants such as Uber Technologies and China's Didi Chuxing.
BMW was an early convert to electric cars, introducing its first standalone battery-powered model, the i3 compact, in 2013 and the plug-in hybrid i8 coupe a year later. Lately, though, it's focused more on under-the-hood conversions of existing vehicles, and sales of its electrics have trailed the likes of Tesla and the Nissan Leaf. BMW is planning only two new battery-powered cars by the end of the decade, and its first self-driving model isn't due until 2021.
Tesla, which is gearing up to challenge BMW's 3 series with its forthcoming Model 3, already offers "autopilot," and Mercedes this fall will introduce an upgraded S-class sedan that it says can self-navigate anything from country lanes to autobahns at speeds exceeding 200 kph (120 mph).
"BMW has lost its leadership in innovation," says Juergen Pieper, an analyst at Bankhaus Metzler in Frankfurt. "It's not brave enough to get into pioneering projects and do something really new."
iNext
That heightens the importance of the iNext, a low-slung sedan with butterfly doors on view at the pep rally. Under bright spotlights, attendees peer at the prototype, its kidney-shaped grille jutting forward, looking a bit like rabbit teeth. The self-driving electric car will replace the 7 series as the company's flagship in 2021, Krueger said last year. Nonetheless, BMW will rely on the 7 series and other traditional combustion-engined models for many more years to finance the transition.
The rally begins with a recorded presentation from Krueger viewed with virtual-reality goggles, an extravagance intended to stress the importance of adopting new technologies. The virtual Krueger exhorts participants "to put all your effort and energy" into the transformation. After a lunch of smoked haddock, semolina dumplings, and kale, the energy falters. Staffers sitting on unstable foam cubes in a stuffy room for a session on autonomous cars have no questions when question and answer time rolls around, even though their jobs may depend on understanding such systems. Still, Michael Manz, who develops sensors for self-driving cars, says the event is helping him better grasp BMW's mission and created a renewed camaraderie. "We were reminded of what we're trying to achieve," he says, sipping a pomegranate iced tea between sessions. "It gets us focused on where we're going."
http://www.autonews.com/article/201...ses-fear-factor-to-rally-staff-in-move-to-evs
Cabasse0
Diesel Dynamiker
- Messages
- 677
Good to see that Bmw is finally aware that it's lagging in terms of innovative design etc...
the new 5 series is a beautiful car but seems to be more a facelift 1 sedan is not beautiful enough it seems already dated ... 2AT and 2 grandAT ... are bad looking cars ... even the new mini coutryman is very special ! only hope in term of design seems to be the x2 ... in high trim level (big wheels, etc.) based on spy !
the new 5 series is a beautiful car but seems to be more a facelift 1 sedan is not beautiful enough it seems already dated ... 2AT and 2 grandAT ... are bad looking cars ... even the new mini coutryman is very special ! only hope in term of design seems to be the x2 ... in high trim level (big wheels, etc.) based on spy !
Similar threads
- Article
- Article
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, abbreviated as BMW is a German multinational
manufacturer of luxury vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
The company was founded in 1916 as a manufacturer of aircraft engines, which it produced
from 1917 to 1918 and again from 1933 to 1945.
Official website: BMW (Global), BMW (USA)
Official website: BMW (Global), BMW (USA)
