BMW is set to go on a massive product offensive, launching 40 models in the next three years.
Announced by CEO Oliver Zipse during the brand's annual results conference, the launches will be either new models or updates to current cars.
At least two of these will be its first Neue Klasse models. The first will be the long-awaited next-generation iX3 - the production version of the Neue Klasse Vision X - which, Zipse said, will be unveiled at the Munich motor show in September. It will be quickly followed by the electric 3 Series.
The news follows a tricky year for its BMW Group parent, with the only silver lining coming in the form of EV sales.
The group sold 426,594 electric cars across its BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands – 13.5% more than in 2023. This meant EVs made up a fifth of the group's total sales.
That was a silver lining in an otherwise difficult year for the group in which revenue fell 8.4% to €142 billion (£119bn) and earnings before tax fell 35.8% to €10.9bn (£9.2bn)
The group was hit hard in the second half of the year because of its massive brake-related recall coupled with the downturn in sales in China.
While the company wouldn’t disclose an exact figure on Chinese market sales, Zipse said the “dip” in China sales was down to “persistently low consumer sentiment”.
Despite that, China was BMW Group’s biggest market for EV sales, with more than 100,000 deliveries. EV sales in the US also hit an all-time annual high, with 50,000 sold.
The US market was the biggest global buyer of M-badged cars too (either full-fat M cars or M Sport trims). These cars accounted for one in 10 BMW sales in the country.
Overall, the group sold 2.45 million cars in 2024, down 4% on the previous year. Of those, 2.2m (-2.3%) were BMWs, 245,000 (-17.1%) were Minis and 5712 (-5.3%) were Rolls-Royces. One in three Rolls cars sold last year was a Spectre EV.
Only a slight increase in deliveries is expected in 2025, said CFO Walter Mertl, as the group navigates tariff increases worldwide.
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