BMW reports a new record brand sales with +2.5M units sold in 2021

The overall Q4 results and YTD through December stand at:

• BMW: 510,727 (down 15.1%) and 2,213,795 (up 9.1%) YTD
• MINI: 77,306 (down 8.5%) and 302,144 (up 3.3%) YTD
• BMW Group Automotive: 589,301 (down 14.2%) and 2,521,525 (up 8.4%) YTD

The plan includes deep electrification of the entire lineup of all brands:

• By 2023, the BMW Group will have at least one fully-electric model on the roads in about 90% of its current market segments
• Fully-electric vehicles to account for at least 50% of its global sales in 2030
• MINI will offer an exclusively all-electric product range by the early 2030
• By 2030 all Rolls‑Royce products will be fully electric
• Over the next ten years or so, the company plans to release a total of about ten million fully-electric vehicles onto the roads
• All future new models from BMW Motorrad in the field of urban mobility will be fully electric

The brand said it was upbeat about hitting the top end of its 9.5%-10.5% profit estimate, now buys battery cells from partners such as CATL, Samsung, and Northvolt – but is building its own pilot battery cell plant.

“We have secured our needs for the next few years very well with the partners we have. We are not yet at the point where we can say what technology will accompany us for the next 10-15 years. That’s why it’s important to invest a lot of resources with worldwide partners in battery cell development.”

Nicolas Peter

BMW made an early entry into EVs but whose portfolio now lags some competitors, plans to add an extra Saturday shift at its Munich plant from April in order to meet demand, a spokesperson said to Reuters.

The German carmaker revealed, during CES Show in Last Vegas, a new prototype that can changes its color in a few seconds. Frank Weber, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Development: “Digital experiences won’t just be limited to displays in the future. There will be more and more melding of the real and virtual. With the BMW iX Flow, we are bringing the car body to life.”

The fluid colour changes are made possible by a specially developed body wrap that is tailored precisely to the contours of the all-electric Sports Activity Vehicle from BMW. When stimulated by electrical signals, the electrophoretic technology brings different colour pigments to the surface, causing the body skin to take on the desired colouration.

“The BMW iX Flow is an advanced research and design project and a great example of the forward thinking that BMW is known for.”

Adrian van Hooydonk, Head of BMW Group Design

The feature will be available for select vehicles in 2022. The artwork is entitled Quantum Garden, and it features “galaxies of visual spaces filled with dots, light beams, and nebulae.”