BMW planning (sub-brand) FWD car

[Mr Robert]

A sporty image without any substance, what is that?

 

[Human]

Reithofer has lost his marbles!

I am NOT going to let this very sad news get the best of me - IT's SIMPLE! DO NOT BUY A FWD BMW! The less they sell the faster the mistake will be rectified!

I hope this goes the SMART path.....Some lessons has to be learned by BMW's 'clever' board members

A FWD BMW!

Seriously, with April around the corner coming to think of it this would have made the BEST April Fool's joke EVER!

 

[Guibo]

I guess, BMW would use a more practicality oriented approach, making the care more usefull for everyday use, and not a lifestyle product like a Cooper. And then, directly challenge the A1/A2.

But doesn't the Clubman already achieve that level of everyday use? As for cross-shopping, I for one would seriously consider a Clubman vs a 1-Series. (It's not like BMW have gone out of their way to make it terribly difficult to compare.

)


BMW before had marketed the 1-Series not as the practical approach anyway. Indeed, in terms of interior space, it was compromised due to the RWD layout and the ability to fit a straight-6 longitudinally whereas class competitors could use transverse 4's and without intruding transmission tunnels. The whole appeal of the 1-Series rested on RWD driving dynamics, which is a purely emotional quality. In the segment, that was what it made it unique. Once that goes away, there's not much else to recommend it. Certainly not pricing because of the sheer volume that VAG products benefit from. Build quality? Err, something tells me the A1 won't be a rickety contraption glued together in a shed.
What if BMW were to introduce a RWD //Mini? At what point do we say there are enough niches? When micro-niches give way and blur into nano-niches...

The question I have for BMW is: What would a FWD BMW provide that a Mini can't?

 

[Human]

^
Nice post, your question to BMW is mine exactly!

BMW VISION EFFICIENT DYNAMICS: "The driving dynamics of a BMW M, the emissions of a small car".

BMW "0" Series: "The driving dynamics of a AUDI / MINI, the emissions of a small car"

 

[Sovereign]

IMO BMW should establish or revive another brand to offer models that are not related to its brand story,ie "The Ultimate Driving Machine". Front wheel cars can be pretty good in handling but BMW is above merely good handling. Rear wheel drive and inline-6 engines are part of its very strong heritage and building blocks of ultimate driving machine slogan.

Mercedes -benz IMO committed this mistake in the 90s when it had the image related to superior engineering. MB was the builder of some of the best mid and large sized cars. They took a new strategic direction by building the A-class- a car that was front drive and small; and that flipped over the mercedes brand story. IMO that was not the right move. Mercedes should have launched the A-class as Smart forFour. Now mercedes imager as premium car maker is not as strong as it was in the past.

I hope BMW would keep the strategic direction of its past in terms of brand image-meaning that it keep building rear wheel drive cars under BMW brand name. Launch Isetta for the small front wheel cars.

 

[ACE]

Joy is ... FWD

BMW seems to be managed by people who are trying to reposition the brand far away from its sporty, RWD heritage. BMW has a very loyal following and all of this brand repositioning seems like a very risky move to me.

 

[Mr Robert]

Joy is ... FWD

BMW seems to be managed by people who are trying to reposition the brand far away from its sporty, RWD heritage. BMW has a very loyal following and all of this brand repositioning seems like a very risky move to me.

BMW wants new customers. Current enthusiasts will have to adapt or look elsewhere.

 

[footie]

Joy is ... FWD

BMW seems to be managed by people who are trying to reposition the brand far away from its sporty, RWD heritage. BMW has a very loyal following and all of this brand repositioning seems like a very risky move to me.

You are British like me so you surely understand the concept of a small city hatchback, the staple diet of Europe. How in the hell can BMW hope to compete in this sector without a FWD platform which promotes interior space and practical packaging. BMW have already proved with the Mini that they understand fully how to make a fun and entertaining FWD car, but in the case of the Mini it's neither practical (by design) or mainstream enough to appeal to a wide audience ranging from the seventeen year old up to the pensioner, it's simply to make of a niche product and will never give the kind of sales numbers needed to push BMW into the big league.

The question that needs to be asked is whether BMW can make this future model competitive enough and yet still give it the up market feel that is present on the rest of their cars, and considering that the 1 series don't doesn't even feel that up market this might be a big ask from them.

 

[Monster]

I need EnI or Scott to explain more about this, has BMW reached the limit with what they can do with the Mini brand? Guibo's question was exactly what I wanted to ask as well

The question I have for BMW is: What would a FWD BMW provide that a Mini can't?

Can't BMW design a more practical Mini? maybe they can build one that is similar to the size of a Golf.

 

[Human]

^
The question is why B M W ??? They could use Isetta, new FWD brand with small gasoline engines, hybrid and electric drive. They can be fun, funky and exciting, no problem! Just keep the BMW brand name out of the equation

Dilution of a premium, prestigious brand name can be dangerous!

 

[Monster]

^
The question is why B M W ???

That I want to know as well

They could use Isetta, new FWD brand with small gasoline engines, hybrid and electric drive. They can be fun, funky and exciting, no problem!

Doesn't that sound like a description for the Mini?

 

[footie]

The whole point of making this car under the BMW badge is to get more people to try the brand that possibly couldn't afford them or most likely didn't have a car that suited their needs. The data suggest that most people generally stick with a brand they like and if you can get them into a quality brand sooner you have a greater chance of keeping them there.

Producing this car under any other brand name would be defeating the purpose.

 

[siko]

BMW wants new customers. Current enthusiasts will have to adapt or look elsewhere.

New customers at the expense of old ones is a dangerous game that usually fails. Once you forget about the people that got you to the top is when you start to tumble down to the bottom.

 

[Monster]

The whole point of making this car under the BMW badge is to get more people to try the brand that possibly couldn't afford them or most likely didn't have a car that suited their needs. The data suggest that most people generally stick with a brand they like and if you can get them into a quality brand sooner you have a greater chance of keeping them there.

Producing this car under any other brand name would be defeating the purpose.

I suppose those who can't afford a new BMW can always purchase an ex-demo or a newish pre-own car, and later on they will go and buy a new BMW when they have earn enough.

 

[Mr Robert]

New customers at the expense of old ones is a dangerous game that usually fails. Once you forget about the people that got you to the top is when you start to tumble down to the bottom.

Yepp. We will have to wait and see what happens.

Footie has a good point regarding luring new people in at the bottom of the ladder, that could work, as long as the entry level car is much cheaper and more convenient than the 1-series, while no BMW values are compromised.

Good luck with that.

 

[bmwownage]

I guess this is a victim of the VAG, their platform sharing across brands is too competitive for BMW to follow, and BMW obviously do not want to yield the A1-sized market to Audi. To make a car like that RWD, the rear room will be so poor, no boot space etc.. so i guess they have no choice. A choice would be just give up this ultra-small car market but clearly they don't want to risk it. Anyhow is it really going to have a BMW badge? Seriously, a 0-series sounds stupid. Since it's FWD, would be better to give it some name instead of a "series", like call it a Zero or something... for zero emissions? i just can't imagine something like a 016i <-- it looks retarded.

 

[footie]

^ It's not a case of not wanting to give it up, it's more a case that BMW need this market to survive as a true independent. A 0 series car will account for 30% of their total sales when it's fully up and running, maybe even more, so might explain the importance of such a model.

 

[Guibo]

I suppose those who can't afford a new BMW can always purchase an ex-demo or a newish pre-own car, and later on they will go and buy a new BMW when they have earn enough.

Yup. That was the entire impetus behind Certified Pre-Owned.


As for the botton-rung ladder feeding theory, are consumers so unsophisticated they can't make the connection between BMW and Mini? It's not like BMW were exactly quiet about it all of these years...

 

[Nikos120i]

Relax people...nobody said that the next 1,3,5,6,7 and M will be FWD! The very essence of BMW in other words.

They'll probable make a small city car like the Smart that will be FWD...what's the point of making RWD? I doubt if it will even have a BMW badge on it.

 

[footie]

As for the botton-rung ladder feeding theory, are consumers so unsophisticated they can't make the connection between BMW and Mini? It's not like BMW were exactly quiet about it all of these years...

Please tell me where you see the connection between the Mini brand and what BMW do?

The reality is that 99% of people view them as entirely separate individual companies, just the way BMW intended.

It's like saying a Rolls is basically a 7 series in an expensive suit.