German Car Zone

Found this in Automotive News Europe.It is an interview w/ Norbert Reithofer at the Paris Auto Show.My interest was perked by the reference to " an approved small crossover based on the 1 and 3 Series platform".Is the X1 based on the 1 AND 3 Series platforms as the article implies? I thought the X1 was based on the 1 Series platform and the SAS was to be based on the 3 Series/2nd Gen X3.Is the 3 Series crossover the SAS?Just confused now.Thanks! PalBay

TALK FROM THE TOP -- NORBERT REITHOFER


So far, BMW cruises above the credit crisis


Automotive News Europe
October 20, 2008 06:01 CET

BMW still has access to credit for its dealers and for financing vehicles. Its rating remains top-notch. Norbert Reithofer, 52, chairman of the board of management at BMW, says the company's conservative financial approach is why the luxury brand isn't suffering during the credit crunch.
But in an interview this month with Automotive News Group editors and reporters at the Paris auto show, Reithofer said BMW isn't unscathed by the turmoil. He predicts that 2009 "will be a challenging year."
Because of changing tastes and the market, BMW killed the Q7 large SUV. But under Reithofer, the company has approved a cross- over for Mini, a small crossover off the 1- and 3-series platform, and a vehicle the company calls the Progressive Activity Sedan.
Reithofer became chairman in September 2006. He joined BMW in 1987 as head of maintenance planning. From 1997 to 2000, he was president of BMW Manufacturing Corp. in South Carolina.
Are you optimistic about America?
We said in the first week of August that we, the BMW Group, think the finance crisis is not yet over. We said during our quarterly press conference that we think the year 2009 will be a very challenging one ... not just for BMW but the car industry.
I hope you will be successful in your country with the $700 billion (bailout). It is not obvious that it is enough. We have not seen anything like it. I've been in the car industry for 22 years, and what happened in September is the first time that I've seen this in the market.
Are you having any challenges with raising capital?
No, not yet.
In America, are you having problems financing your dealers and customers?
We have very good distribution if it comes to financing us. We use sources in Asia. We use sources in Europe. We use sources in the United States. Until today, we did not have an issue. We have an A+ or A1 rating.
A lot of people asked me last year, "What about your cash pile on your balance sheet?" I was very stubborn, as you know. It was good, though. BMW, from a financial point of view, was always a conservative company, and we still are. And now, it (appears it) was not so bad to be conservative.
What can you tell us about the X1 small crossover?
The X1 was a very quick decision at one board meeting at the end of 2006 during my first six months as chief executive. We realized as well from the year 2010 (on), we don't have a very good growth rate. We have a good growth rate again from the year 2013 and 2014.
We said, "We need quick decisions." One of our quick decisions was the X1. The X1 will be good for a lot of cars per year.
So it will be a big-volume vehicle?
Yes, it will be a big-volume vehicle for our company. More or less in my first six months we decided the Mini Colorado (crossover) as a concept car, and we decided the Progressive Activity Sedan.
And the Concept CS?
Yes, the Concept CS car, but it is not big volume. The Progressive Activity Sedan, we are quite confident that this is the right product. But the X1 and the Mini Colorado, as you say in the United States, are really dead-on.
Across the board, you do not see the mix moving downward?
We have a couple of interesting phenomena. One is X5 and X6. We expected we will feel the change of customer wishes, and we could not see that in the X5 and X6. The only explanation we have is that we use extremely efficient six-cylinder diesel and petrol engines.
How far along were you on this large X7 SUV that reportedly was killed?
We said we don't need an X7 any more. We had part of the concept development phase already done. It was part of a modular system.
With CO2 regulations and fuel economy regulations in America, where do you see things going? What is the long-term strategy?
In the future we will not sell cylinders. In the future we will sell modern technology. We have to ask the future customer, "What is the value of a turbocharged four-cylinder engine (with) add-on brake regeneration, intelligent aerodynamics, stop-start and an electric motor?"
Can you ask for the same price as in the past for a six-cylinder petrol engine without additional features? That will be the core question (for) the car industry. It will not be cheaper for a car manufacturer to put a four-cylinder turbocharged engine with all the add-ons into a car, compared to a six-cylinder engine.
What about the residual value of your cars. Isn't it a nightmare for your dealers?
Looking at the residual values of the brand BMW starting from January 2001, since the drop in house prices, our residual values started to go down. We are still better than other luxury brands, but if you see the drop we could, of course, feel the financial crisis as well. We had a good sales flow, but it was more and more difficult during the subprime crisis to sell used cars.
Don't you have 132,000 used cars coming back this year? Aren't many going to auction because the dealers won't buy them all?
We looked into the structure of the residual-value development. And if I see a 525 in the United States, then the residual value is unchanged. If a see a 550, it has gone down.
It is a structural issue as well. We have more than 1 million cars with efficient, dynamic features in the market — in Europe mainly — and in three years they will come back and have the package on board.
Will BMW continue to expand the product portfolio? Does the market demand that there be more models and body styles?
If we have a normal economic situation again, then I think it is still a very good idea to have more models. But you have to do it in an intelligent way with a modular system. Otherwise you will not do it economically.
I use the example of our new six- and four-cylinder diesel engines. We use a modular system now. We did not have a good modular system in the past. In principle, you have the annual production figure of 700,000, and you have good economies of scale.
You said you want to have more derivatives of the 3 and 5. What more can you do?
The X1 is a derivative of the 1 and 3 series. It can use the current platform.
Will there be a car below the 1 series?
Not at BMW.
Is your Project i city car approved?
The megacity vehicle is on the way; we are working on it. Project i is a project group outside the normal organizational structure of the BMW Group.
The first result of Project i is a Mini with an electric motor. We will give to special customers in the United States at the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 around 500 vehicles in New York, New Jersey and California; 50 cars in London; and 50 cars in Berlin. One year later, we will have results as a pilot project. The next step will be toward a megacity vehicle of the BMW Group.
This is where a fourth brand comes up?
I don't know yet.

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XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Too much X talk from BMW, so boring. Check my signature.

^ Pfffff....you and your petitions.....is that the same site where you had the 'E92 M3 sÚcKz' petition?

Andreas: that petition is not doing so well .. wonder why

I haven't put much into markeeting my petition. I have to do a lot more effort if I want more signatures. But whats the point, its not like BMW is going to change their mind anyway. 10.000 signatures wouldn't help much. All bmw think of is how to earn money and to sell sell cars.

Everyone here know I'm a huge fan of BMW but it doesn't mean Im going to support every decision they make, unlike some others might do.

PS why dont I see your signature

Me 2 Andreas, although some decisions should be made to survive but having an X5/6M is not one of those decisions, especially right now. I'd love to see how the X series is gonna defy the laws of physics but it shouldn't take place of any other M model, especially hardcore ones.

I think i deleted or hidden my signature by mistake .. am thinking of a new one any way

i agree with just me.

x talk is boring, bmw make road readt racecars. not trucks that try to drive like cars,

I get as excited about another BMW "X" model as I do another season of "Flavor of Love."

Funny that, a private business like BMW wanting to make money.

Well I can say that cars like the X1 don't make me exited t all either. But I at least accept it's existance and understand there is a market for the cars they make....and I don't think it's ugly, but quite pretty for what it is. I think that helps too

I mean, the last car that didn't sell well was the wonderful 8 series many years ago, and that was not because it was a bad car (probably the most advanced one ever made in it's time, in fact) but because of a huge recession.....point is, I trust them at what they do when they decide it's time for a new car, even when it doesn't get me exited like a 1er M or M3 CSL would

phewww