The BMW European Delivery (ED) program has several advantages aside from just the opportunity to drive on some of the world’s best roads. Though in my opinion this is the main reason you should consider taking advantage of this program.
Unlike some manufacturers BMW has not tagged on added fees or packages. They take care of your road use tax for three months (additional charges for over three months), 14 days of $0 deductible insurance, which includes another driver (can be extended in 30 day increments up to 2 weeks before your delivery), and your tourist registration. So you are all set to drive.
During my morning ritual catching up on the latest news from my favorite auto sites, I stumbled across this little tidbit at Jalopnik.com. BMW appears to have something special in mind for “launching” the new 1 series in the US. If you’ll follow the links you’ll see some substantial groundwork for an extensive viral web campaign to build buzz for the new model line I’ll call “Rampenfest.”
According to several sources at the US 1 Series launch event a few weeks ago, BMW has decided to cut US bound 1 Series production from 30,000 to around 10,000 for time being. Apparently the weakening dollar is making 1er margins razor thin and BMW doesn’t want to commit more money to marketing which would help sell the more cars.
Our original information was recently confirmed through other sources and contacts. The allocation dealers have been quoted are much lower than originally estimated. From what we have learned they are only being alloted 4-6 cars per month currently for the entire model line. If you do the math that is around 15,000 cars and that does not mean every dealer will be given that many cars. Some of the first cars at dealers on the East Coast will be 128 convertibles which are currently sitting awaiting clearance from the EPA and are more than likely dealer showroom/demo cars. Many of the first batch of coupes that were destined for this role were damaged last month in a shipping accident.
We have just received some breaking news courtesy from an internal BMW memo that confirms our original speculation. The names of the models in the X6 lineup were not created because of some marketing plan. The xDrive50i and xDrive35i may have some competition in the amount of (nomenclature related) weight added to the rear of BMW models in the not so distant future.
Here’s an excerpt from the internal BMW memo:
Due to upcoming U.S. regulations in effect for Model Year 2009, we are changing some of our naming protocol. The new naming protocol will affect all products that currently have an engine displacement designation within the name—X3, X5, X6, Z4 and Z4 Coupe.
With that quote one can only imagine what other names we will see! What do you think they will name the Z?
It’s old news to most but when the NYT picks up on it, it’s important news.
The company — whose cars have sold particularly well in the United States — has responded quickly to global trends, notably the rising price of raw materials and exchange rate volatility, largely through hedging.
On Wednesday, BMW sought to portray the layoffs in the same light. “Flexibility has long been a key strength of the BMW Group,” Ernst Baumann, managing director for human resources, said in a statement. “We have always been able to ride the ups and downs of the market.”
Not ground breaking news but something that client advisors often over look are Priority 1 options. BMWNA does not openly advertise or promote these options and are often items that the majority of buyers have no interest in. To some they are what sells them on the car. Priority 1 essentially means that the car is for a specific buyer as a “sold” car. These options are not available for dealer lot cars or pre-specced cars.
We have also obtained a full copy of the dealer ordering guide which shows all the options (includes 1 and X6) so enjoy! There appears to be some added benefit of purchasing a 1 series with a production date after March as more colors will be available and some changes to equipment are being made. We will try to find out why some of these changes are being made.
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We believe in the old school BMW ownership experience. We believe in garage nights with a six pack and some friends. We believe in 2002s, in E30 M3s and E34 540s with the 6 speed. We believe in progress in both design and engineering but we haven't lost sight of what made the brand and its products great all those years ago. And yes, we believe in the manual transmission.
We long for the days of the wave and for the days of roll-up windows. Yet we love the gadgets on the inside and the xenons on the outside.
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Sections: European Delivery, Sales/Marketing Feb 29th, 2008 9 Comments 
