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BMW bringing two new concepts to Pebble Beach

BMW has announced that it will reveal not one, but two new concept cars during Monterey Car Week next month. The Bavarian automaker released this teaser image in conjunction with the announcement, showing what looks like a rather racy steering wheel to suggest that at least one of those concepts will be focused on performance. The signature red and blue stitching on the wheel and the participation of the M division's R&D chief in the press conference also hint at its nature. We're intrigued, though, by some of the buttons on the wheel with labels like "Flash," "Cool," and "PSL." The Roundel marque has been known to create concept cars to showcase at classic car concours, but they're more often presented at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este that BMW has supported for over a decade on the shores of Italy's picturesque Lake Como. That's where BMW revealed in recent years the 3.0 CSL Hommage, the Pininfarina Gran Lusso, and the Zagato Coupe concepts (to name just a few). It did, however, follow up on the latter with Zagato Roadster concept at Pebble Beach that same year. We might project that at least one of the concepts would represent another brand affiliated with BMW – like Mini, Rolls-Royce, or BMW Motorrad. However the announcement below seems to indicate fairly clearly that they'll both be "concept cars" (not bikes), and that they'll be presenting the BMW brand itself (not another from the group). The show cars are also likely to veer more toward the design-study end of the spectrum than previewing any specific upcoming production models, and we wouldn't be surprised if the two arrived as a matching pair of sorts. BMW's California-based Designworks studio is also likely to have played a key role in at least one of the projects. But to find out more, we'll have to wait for the press conference on August 13 in the BMW Villa at Pebble Beach. The concepts will subsequently make the rounds of key Monterey events, including The Quail, the Legends of the Autobahn Concours d'Elegance, the Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion, and of course the headline Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. BMW to Unveil Two World Premier Concept Cars During Monterey Car Week. Media Preview at The BMW Annual Press Conference on Thursday Evening. Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – July 17, 2015... BMW is pleased to invite credentialed media to the 'BMW at the 2015 Monterey Car Week' preview press conference on August 13th at 6:00pm.

BMW, Sixt carsharing making money most places

The DriveNow carsharing service, which is a partnership between BMW and Sixt, is growing quite rapidly. "We've been surprised about the explosion of new subscriptions, which has helped boost revenue," says Sixt CEO Erich Sixt. The number of DriveNow users has increased from 215,000 at the end of last year to 300,000 today. Sixt says that DriveNow has been profitable in cities in which it has been established for over a year. Perhaps encouraged by its unexpected success, DriveNow is set to expand even further. The service is currently available in five German cities, as well as in San Francisco, California, and the involved parties are considering a five-year plan to expand to 25 more cities in Europe and the US. Still, Sixt expects DriveNow to report a "small-to-medium, single-digit" loss for this year, according to Sixt CFO Julian zu Putlitz. It's no big deal, just the result of startup costs in new areas. Sixt, which is Germany's largest car rental company, also reported that its own second-quarter income rose 12 percent to $37.7 million, while sales rose 7.6 percent to $585.78 million. DriveNow uses a membership and pay-per-minute model that allows customers to rent BMW and Mini vehicles as they need them. The service also acts as a way to let potential customers try out the vehicles and familiarize themselves with the brands before they buy cars of their own at some point. Depending on the location, DriveNow's fleet includes the BMW 1 Series, ActiveE and X1, as well as several Mini vehicles like the Cooper, Clubman and Countryman. Featured Gallery 2012 BMW ActiveE: First Drive View 31 Photos News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Copyright 2014 AOL Green BMW MINI car sharing profit revenue drivenow sixt

BMW is the US auto industry's leading exporter

Which automaker do you think ships the most cars out of North America, one of the Detroit Three or perhaps one of the Japanese automakers? Nope. It turns out the BMW's Spartanburg, SC, factory is the biggest automotive exporter from the continent in the United States. According to a recent profile by Bloomberg looking at the plant's 20th anniversary, Bimmer's southern ops sends out more vehicles than all of Michigan combined.
When the Spartanburg factory opened up in 1994, its success was hardly assured, largely because of South Carolina's relatively small economy at the time. However, BMW picked the site because of its proximity to East Coast shipping that made it easier to move engines and transmission in from Germany and export vehicles back to Europe, according to Bloomberg. The Bavarians clearly made the right choice.
Today, the plant has developed into an absolute powerhouse. The factory currently assembles the X3, X4, X5 and X6 and exports about 70 percent of the vehicles built there. Things are only getting better. BMW is investing $1 billion through 2016 to boost annual production from the current 300,000 units up to 450,000 and to build a new flagship crossover called X7. The expansion also adds a further 800 jobs there to take total employment up to about 8,800. Including the latest financing, BMW has put over $7.3 billion into the factory since it opened, notes Bloomberg.