LexFather

I won't scan but there is a great article on BMW in business week on the company and I learned some things I didn't know. They have a company mantra basically called 1959, the year they almost went bankrupt and bought by Mercedes and they teach all new hires and even current employees about it. I really like that.

Also, they hire based on how well you work with teams, b/c they feel teams are what makes the best product. They also talked about BMW and their choice of options they give customers. Even a Lexus executive said "We could learn something from BMW with options".

The Mini starts at $17,000 but they AVERAGE selling price is over $28,000 because of OPTIONS! That is great business.

They talked about their new factory which actually has some of the assembly line over the cafeteria area! Your eating and above you, the BMW cars are moving along the assembly line!!

BMW seems to challenge all processs and thoughts. They openly welcome any ideas, no matter how crazy or absurd. They actually promote outside the box thinking.

A head engineer also promised the next round of BMWs will be the most technological advanced cars from a computer standpoint. As in, maybe internet from your car!

What I liked was how they truly acknowledged Lexus twice as being a serious contender, especially since they are making sportier cars and they will probably begin to build cars in Europe. BMW basically said they respect Lexus and BMW has to continue to stay on their toes.

Great article!

mmarshall

Is it any wonder BMW almost went bankrupt in 1959? Just look at what they were producing:
http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...=Search+Images

And how can they take Lexus seriously when, with some of the Chris Bangle designs, they don't even take themselves seriously any more?

I know I may get some flak for this statement......particularly from genearch......but that is the way I see it.

doug_999

Those "bangle" designs are not only selling well, but the "bangle butt", as some like to call it, is being copied by quite a few manufacturers. Pretty cool - especially since he didn't even do the design.

mmarshall

Sorry, doug.....I forgot you are a BMW fan too. I know there are those who disagree with me about the Bangle designs, I-Drive, and BMW's drop in build quality with the latest models....you are free to join them if you like. But I have never been impressed with the Bangle-inspired designs, still am not, and am not likely to change my mind anytime soon. They simply turn me off...big time....and I don't care for the Bangle " look-alikes " on other cars any more than on BMW's themselves. For instance, I have been as equally critical of Audi's MMI as I have been the BMW I-Drive.....IMO it is just as awkward.
Genearch seems to have mastered the I-Drive, though, and likes it.

You are correct that BMW's are still selling today, but it is also true that some of the core of the BMW faithful are no longer with them either.


OK....my helmet and body armor is on and secured. Now you and genearch can toss the bricks at me if you want.

javyLSU

iTrader: (21)

Dammit! I got Mobil1 on my mashed potatos again!!!

Javier

doug_999

No armor needed - your comments are fair. The new designs turned off a lot of people - but if you read the BW article that's exactly the type of company BMW wants to be - progressive. They could have re-styled the 5 and 7 in an evolutionary way vs. revolutionary way - but they wanted to do something different. Sometimes that thinking works (1986 Taurus) and sometimes it fails (Aztec) - but at least they are trying something different - that's the cool thing IMHO.

I-Drive is a great Ver 1 of where we are all headed. Audi's MMI is a great Ver 2 - they will only get better. The knock against I-Drive is that it is hard to use - that's bunk. Does it require too many steps to do things? Yes! Is it slow as hell! You bet! Could it use improvement - yes, lots.

Anyway, back to your original post...I think they (BMW) take their product very seriously and if you read that BW article, Toyota is studying them very carefully to see how they do what they do.

Oh and Javier, it is Castrol, not Mobil 1 damnit.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

LOL - Whatever many of us think of Bangle designs, they've sold well. To BMW's credit, they do listen and refresh things as they can, and the 7 series refresh is a big improvement. There's really still nothing about the 5 series or 3 series sedan looks I like though but many must think otherwise.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

I agree there. BMW is definitely an innovative company.

In a Windows 1.0 kind of way. The implementation stinks but I agree, it will become more popular. Touch screens aren't ideal either. I believe BMWs also have a far more extensive voice recognition capability (along with Acura) than Lexus, and this is a good alternative to buttons, screens, *****, etc.

Richie

Good info Mike, thanks for sharing!!

Ice350

iTrader: (1)

I also love the current bimmer designs. Mainly because they were so innovative. As an enthusiast, I was tired of seeing cookie cutter design time after time. Bimmer did something different and it is selling well. As a true testament to it's value, it is being copied by others.
The E46 is a nicelooking car. Modded it is sweet. It is also one of the most understated....bump that....it's plain. Really plain. I took some pics once of some bimmers next to a Porsche, Benz and my SC. I posted them on E46fanatics.com. I was amazed how a couple of posters commented how plain their car looks next to other high end cars. As much as I loved the E39 it too is just plain. BMW needed some flair, some spice. Why pay all that money for plain Jane cars. The public agrees, they are selling well.

mmarshall

These cars have just become sport-sedan traditions, Bangle or not, and, like you say, some people buy then simply because they ARE 3 or 5-series cars.

I don't have as negative a feeling towards the new 3-series as I do the 5 and 7. I know more than one person who has coughed up a lot of money for a new 7 and then got rid of it because it spent so much time in the shop.

And let's face it....most of the attraction of the new M5 centers around the new 500 HP V10 ( limited under normal circumstances to 400 HP ), though BMW is going to do a straight manual for it because of requests from the American market.



I've done nothing but discuss BMW's, though, and have neglected the Lexus side of this thread. From my reviews of several new Lexus products, and what I have read in car mag tests, it seems that the BMW characteristics are starting to rub off on Lexus too. The new IS has become even more of a competition to the 3-series with its new 3.5L 305 HP V6, and the new ES ( needlessly, IMO ) has shed its comfortable ride and superb interior trim for a more BMW-like 2007 model with firmer chassis and tires.

@lpher

I guess that would be a welcome change from the sauerkraut?

pagemaster

100% wrong here. The Bangle butt worked, was successful, was copied and will be further considered for most redesigned cars.

Also, the 745 was one of the most successful redesigns in BMW's history, they sold 7 series with this redesign than ever before.

mmarshall

I'm not arguing that.............but it is a fact that a lot of people are also turned off by the car's unreliability. That documented unreliability is not just me....you don't have to take my word for it. It comes from a far more complete source than me.....Consumer Reports, probably the best and most credible source in the country for auto reliability. I rely on them myself for car reliability......more than almost any other source.


And an "ugly" vehicle does not necessarily mean low sales. Look at the Scion xB, the 1995-1999 Ford Taurus, and the Honda Element. These are three vehicles that I would certainly call ugly, yet have sold quite well. Even the Pontiac Aztek, a vehicle so ugly it was the constant butt of automotive jokes, appealed to some people.

pagemaster

Yes, I know about the reliability and this why I bought my Toyota Truck, because of the reliability. That being said, there are a lot of people of there that don't care about the reliability when owning a BMW. The BMW is the ultimate driving machine, I recently drove a Z3, that thing handles amazing, you feel connected to the road, perfect weight distribution.

Also, many people lease vehicles in the 750's price range and don't keep them for many years, these are the exectuives that have a lot of cash and change vehicles often, plus these people also usually have other cars.

There are other imporant consideration when bought a car, reliability is not the sole factor to most people.