It was a tough first quarter for German luxury automakers Audi, Porsche, and Mercedes. There are a lot of reasons and we’ll look at those, but there’s one German automaker not sweating it: BMW. What’s the deal with BMW? Why is it suffering less? Let’s take a deeper look.
The National Transportation Safety Board is suddenly way more important these days as rail, aviation, and highway disasters seem to be piling up. There’s a nomination before the U.S. Senate for a new term for the current board chair and it’s a big deal.
Partially, it’s a big deal because the automotive industry is rapidly trying to make self-driving cars a thing. Tesla is in the lead in terms of emphasis, if not actual tech, and its enthusiasm for pretending like its cars can actually drive themselves has resulted in a rare legal settlement from the automaker.
There’s been a movement to restrict California from enforcing its EV rules, but the U.S. Court of Appeals says California can keep on keeping on.
Let’s dumpty dump like Shock G.
BMW Is The Surprising Outlier Among German Luxury Brands
I was chatting with Parker and some other car folks about design this morning and Parker brought up that he felt like we’re in a great period where a wide variety of automakers are creating interesting products people want (Defender, new 4Runner, Santa Cruz). The one automaker that was conspicuously not on his list was BMW.
There’s a bit of an enthusiast bias for/against BMW. It’s a company that has the benefit/burden of having such a great past that the present doesn’t always feel right. This is in spite of BMW making cars that are faster, safer, and nicer at the same time. There’s no stock BMW 2002 that wouldn’t get knee-dropped by a BMW X4 M Competition around Laguna Seca. Hell, an E30 M3 would probably lose that race.
Some of this is design. It’s polarizing. It’s distinct, but it’s not for everyone. All of this would leave an enthusiast with the impression that BMW is a doomed company. Far from it, BMW is doing quite well relative to its competitors so far this year.
Why? First of all, BMW still builds a ton of fantastic cars, both gas and EV. The BMW iX is a stellar electric crossover. I borrowed one and, though it wasn’t precisely to my taste, it’s impossible to ignore that it is a well-built and extremely comfortable car. The new BMW M2 is great. Of all the European automakers, I think BMW has the best EV lineup.
In Q1 of 2024, total sales were up 2.4% in the United States compared to Q2 of 2023, and BEV sales were up 62.6%, accounting for more than 12% of BMW’s total volume. Globally, the company is up 2.5% over the same period, with a 40.6% increase in BEV sales.
I don’t think the new BMW X2 is something I would buy, but it’s attractively priced (would you rather have that or a Hornet?) and I’m sure they’ll sell a ton of them.
BMW has exposure to China, where it’s down 3.8%, but there’s enough growth everywhere else to counteract that. It’s hard to say the same for the rest of Germany’s luxury automakers.
Porsche, percentage-wise, had a rough Q1 with deliveries down 4% globally, including a 24% drop in China. Given China’s economic uncertainty and demand woes that’s not a huge surprise, but what’s going on in North America? It seems like the Audi/VW/Porsche vehicles that were held in ports due to a non-compliant part were mostly Porsches. There’s a new EV Macan coming, which might help, plus that part issue has been resolved.
Mercedes also had a rough go of it in China, with a 13% drop in that country which contributed to an overall 6% decrease in sales in Q1 2024 for the company globally. Is all hope lost? Not quite. Mercedes-Benz is in the midst of a production rollout for the revised and locally-built LWB E-Class and U.S. sales were up slightly.
And then there’s Audi. I haven’t seen Audi Q1 global amounts released yet, but the picture is bleak in the United States where there was a 16% year-over-year drop. The company’s big volume Q5 was down 33% Y-O-Y, and the Q7 was down 35%. Electric cars were generally up, but they were also available.
Given that Audi CPO volume was up 66% I think some of this is likely due to the port issue as well, especially considering that Audi had a strong 2023. Globally this ain’t gonna help though.
In the end, BMW has a desirable product mix, a strong EV portfolio, and a little bit of good timing on its side. We’ll see in a quarter if everyone else catches back up or if BMW extends its lead.
The NTSB Chair Is An Important Person You Never Want To Meet
Like Harvey Keitel in “Pulp Fiction,” the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board is not someone who shows up when things are going well. It usually means a plane has crashed, a boat has hit a bridge, or a rail car full of noxious chemicals has overturned somewhere.
The NTSB’s current chair is Jennifer Homendy and she’s up for another term, which means she gets to appear before the Senate’s Commerce Committee.
David Shephardson has read her testimony and filed this report, which included this little bit:
“On scene, my most important duty is to brief the families on what is often the worst day of their lives. It’s why I fight so hard for NTSB safety recommendations,” Homendy will say, according to her written testimony pledging to continue serving “as a fierce advocate for improving transportation safety.”
It’s not a great gig, but someone has to do it, and so far I’ve appreciated Homendy’s tough stance on a number of issues. In particular, Homendy has pushed for advanced driver assistance systems like Tesla’s ‘Autopilot’ to be more closely scrutinized.
Tesla Settles Autopilot Lawsuit
It does sometimes feel like Tesla gets away with everything and wins every court case, especially since CEO Elon Musk bought Twitter and turned it into his own echo chamber, though that’s not reality.
In fact, Tesla settled a lawsuit this week with the family of engineer Walter Huant, who used his Model X’s ‘Autopilot’ system and felt comfortable enough with it that he was allegedly playing a video game when his car crashed into a barrier.
After dropping his son off at preschool, Huang activated the Autopilot feature on his Model X for his commute to his job at Apple. But less than 20 minutes later, Autopilot veered the vehicle out of its lane and began to accelerate before barreling into a barrier located at a perilous intersection on a busy highway in Mountain View, California. The Model X was still traveling at more than 70 miles per hour (110 kilometers per hour).
Huang, 38, died at the gruesome scene, leaving behind his wife and two children, now 12 and 9 years old.
Tesla said it settled the case to avoid years of litigation, but I do wonder if part of this doesn’t have to do with who was killed. This wasn’t a random person who was out drinking, as in a previous case. This was an Apple engineer en route to work in the morning.
It would have been difficult to paint Huang as a technological neophyte or an irresponsible person.
EPA Says California Can Keep Its EV Mandate
California has long been able to set its own emissions standards, largely because the state suffered so much from vehicle emissions in the 20th century. This includes setting the state’s first EV standards, which California rolled out in 1993.
Lately, the California Air Resources Board (CARB, get it?) pushed a plan to end all gasoline-only sales by 2035. Many other states follow California’s lead, so this was a de facto ICE ban for much of the country.
A collection of 17 Republican-led states opposed this idea and tried to sue, but the U.S. Court of Appeals said California has a right to do this.
From Reuters via Automotive News:
Wyoming will be the first to ban EVs, not so much because they don’t want them, but because so many in the state can’t spell EV.
Being a Wyomingite, I partially agree with this assessment. We in the Equality State all know EWs are dangerous. /s
Haven’t loss your sense of humor, though.
What’s the issue youse have with EGs again?
LOL
They keep blindin’ the horses with those highfalutin electric lanterns lighting the way.
Are all 38 residents of Wyoming behind the ban?
“Behind the ban” is where you keep firewood in Maine.
After making lots of fun of BMWs morphing in the Buc-ee’s mascot, I was rather surprised at how much I genuinely like the looks of their IMSA GTD entries.
As to a potential EV ban, I don’t think any states will actually ban them, but I can definitely see some really stupid license plate fees going forward. With “You’re not paying enough road-tax through gasoline, so pay us an extra couple of grand for your plates” reasoning to push it through.
A state-level Republican in Wyoming tried. Given his hilarious failure, I doubt we’ll see anyone actually pull this off. But if I had to put money on someone, it’d be Florida. Always bet on Florida to do the insane and unthinkable. Especially with
MeatwadDeSantis at the helm.Hey now, don’t disrespect him like that. That’s PUDDING FINGERS, not Meatwad.
I assume we’re worried about disrespecting Meatwad and not the other way around right?
I like Meatwad.
I feel sincere remorse for disparaging our beloved lil’ guy in such a way. Ron “Puddin’ Fingers” DeSanctamonious can [redacted], though.
I respect the admission, and appreciate the revision.
I do too. I used to love getting stoned off my ass and watching Aqua Teen Hunger Force in college.
Great times. I have the first 4 seasons on DVD kicking around here somewhere…
That era was peak Adult Swim and remains untouchable. I also love Metalocalypse, and Super Jail was another show I enjoyed in severely altered states of mind. I want to say that was around the time when they were collaborating with MF DOOM as well.
Ah AS was always great, CN biggest loss in cutting the cord.
My kids still have no idea what Kraweechee (sp?) means or where it cam from, I use it daily.
F Meatwad, Master Shake all the way….. or Mooninites…. Carl is definitely never owning an EV…
My profile name certainly implies that I’m a fan of this era. Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job, Sealab 2021, Harvey Birdman, etc.
The entire vibe was great, right down to the music, the bumpers, everything. That somehow seamless experience despite the whiplash in styles from show to bizarre show is completely lost without cable as Brian notes below.
Meatwad busting Beef Rap by MF DOOM!
https://youtu.be/kS7aRs3IA50?si=7yYnfPdKlMIZw0sx
Do you remember the Boston Mooninites bomb scare?
That morning I drove by one, as was like OMG LOL. Hours later the city is in lock down. Next day I sent many emails to city officials telling them the were F’in Idiots. It happened in many cities and Boston is the only one that freaked out, arrested people, can’t recall what punishment the guys got…
How could I forget?!
Are you Peter? hahhaha I must be old because it seems longer than 17yrs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Boston_Mooninite_panic
Shit. I was thinking that was just 10 years ago…
As was I
But I like meat! Meat is good!
How about Puddingwad?
Nope, Florida really likes EV’s. A surprisingly large amount of Condos and hotels have chargers. Turns out the sun dishes out a whole bunch of free energy.
When has Pudding Fingers ever taken what Floridians like or need into consideration?
In all seriousness, a lot of times. He definitely says some dumb shit and is one goofy dude, but as far as how the state functions in the form of civil services/environmental protections, it functions pretty well, actually.
The morality stuff and pandering is a whole other story, that part is problematic.
Florida has shown a remarkable appetite for doing things directly against their own best interest. A state dependent on tourism wouldn’t normally start a beef with one the largest themepark and media empires… a state so vulnerable to climate change wouldn’t ban the mere mention of those words in government communication… and yet Florida,,,
Ugh. Again, it was about money. The kind of money that leads to budget surpluses.
I think a ban on banning ICE is more likely – I could see that happening in many places.
Desantis won’t because he allied with musk during his primary campaign (he announced his bid on musk’s twitter). Perhaps his successor will.
The funny thing about EVs and California vs ‘red’ states(TX, the southeast), is due to laxer regulatory laws, a lot of the red states are booming with EV charging spots, CA is one of the hardest states to add a lot more charging spots due to regulations.
Like, do you want EVs or not? If you want everybody to get EVs, having ample charging(at least as ample as gas stations) should be a priority, but nope, Cali’s gonna Cali.
It’s not hard to see why BMW is successful at all. I think most of it is due to the fact that they’ve taken a stellar approach to electrification, and not just BEVs. They have more or less standardized mild hybrids across their ICE lineup, which has led to significant gains in fuel economy on top of their already extremely efficient B48 and 58 powertrains.
BMW’s ICE offerings pretty much sit at the top or near the top of their classes when it comes to fuel economy, and in 2024 that’s something that really matters to a lot of people. They also have stellar PHEV offerings with 40+ mile EV range that they can’t keep on lots. Even several year old X5 40es with less range and 40,000 miles on the clock are selling for near $50,000 in my area, because people want PHEVs. As you all know my dad got an X5 50e last year and it’s incredible. BMW more or less has a PHEV variant of all their volume sellers at this point.
They also understand something about EVs that most manufacturers don’t-that people don’t want ridiculous tech spaceships that try to reinvent the wheel. Customers are more likely to consider an EV if it doesn’t involve much adjustment and behaves like what they’re used to. Even if it doesn’t lead to the best EVs when it comes to range or platforms, they move more of them.
That’s by design. A 4 series and an i4 are virtually the exact same other than the powertrain. It’s the same way with a 5 series and i5. BMW intentionally offers one experience across the board with these models that allows you to pick the powertrain. I see i4s all over the place and am already seeing more i5s than 530is. What’s more of an adjustment for the average buyer-hopping in something that nearly identical to the ICE car they’re trading in or hopping in a Lucid?
The other German manufacturers have screwed up pretty hard on this front. Mercedes EVs are dystopian tech nightmare that no one wants. Audi’s EVs aren’t competitive at all, and neither company has much of anything to offer when it comes to hybrids. If you’re someone who’s well off, environmentally conscious, and wants a luxury car BMW is kind of the only shop in town right now. There’s also Lexus, but I think the Venn Diagram of Lexus and BMW shoppers is nearly two separate circles.
There are other reasons as well. Their interiors are class leading and ridiculously solid. As controversial as their designs are they appeal to the conspicuous consumption crowd because they draw way more attention than something like a Q5 or GLC will. All their platforms are RWD except the X1/X2 and 2 series GC, which the other Germans and most of the Japanese luxury brands can’t claim.
But if I had to point to one thing? It’s electrification. They understood the assignment well and put their eggs in the right baskets. Their success is similar to Toyota’s at the moment. People want hybrids, they want better fuel economy, and if they’re going to go electric they don’t want to deal with some techno spaceship monstrosity that’s reinvented 500 things solely for the sake of reinventing them. You won’t find a goddamn yoke in a BMW.
If I was shopping for a luxury car right now the local BMW dealership would probably be my first stop. They’re not making the balls to the wall enthusiast cars quite like they once were, but rumors of their demise have been greatly exaggerated.
This. Volvo is really the only other game in town when it comes to compelling EV and PHEV options, but for folks who habitually lease a new (BMW/Mercedes/Audi) sedan or SUV every couple years, BMW is the only one of the three that makes a compelling case to upgrade.
An iX3 would sell like hotcakes around here (socal). Hopefully Porsche has some success with their new EV Macan.
I’m anxious awaiting the leases on the Macan EV. Like I said in my reply to Stef, Porsche rarely offers competitive leasing or financing since many of their customers can afford to pay cash/they don’t want the poors being able to get within striking distance. But in the EV game leasing is key right now and it’s the only way you should be considering a new EV.
If they get it in the $6-800 range there’s a decent chance a Macan EV is my next car in a couple years. If it’s 4 figures then fougetaboutit!
I’ve told this story before, but it’s still relevant: I was at a state park a few years ago and saw a giant BMW some-stupid-alphanumeric crossover parked in an EV charging spot. As I was walking toward it I wondered who I could report it to because the lot was full and I assumed the BMW driver was just a rich, entitled asshole who decided they were more important than EV drivers. Then I realized it was actually plugged in. I had no idea BMW was making plug-in anything at that point (I think the i3 and i8 were already dead), much less a big crossover. I’m not sure anyone else even had a big plugin crossover.
They’ve been quietly electrifying their lineup (a bit like Toyota) while everyone was focused on the companies like Tesla and Ford making big EV splashes. This has left them perfectly positioned to take advantage of the pivot to hybrids that seems to be happening.
My dad’s X5 50e has averaged something like 40 MPG once everything is factored in. For a 5,000 pound Luxobarge it’s damn impressive, and he drives hard. I’m sure you could have those boats at 50 MPG plus no problem.
Do I love the fact that everyone has a 5,000 pound boat? No. Would I rather those 5,000 pound boats be capable of moving around on electricity and sip fuel? You bet! My whole spiel with hybrids/electrification in general is simple…let’s not write off the good to try to chase perfection.
Which states will ban (B)EVs? I’m going to guess Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and a good portion of the the mid-west, stopping at Illinois/Michigan. If any of them actually put pen to paper on it, this political football thing is going to turn into a political dump truck.
BMW and the other high end OEMs seem so out of reach that they’d probably look at me like some low class consumption slave. The only one of those brands that I feel wouldn’t shoe me out with a broom would be Lamborghini, as they seem like they can still be cool without being up their own butts about it.
You guess that all the states with lots of sunshine are gonna ban EV’s? Yeah…
Just the red ones 😉 I would say a much lower chance of Florida since they have a lot of folks using them there already, but given the drama between the governor and Disney, I honestly don’t know what to think.
The Disney thing is only really about taxes/revenue sharing. All the rest of that noise is just clickbait. Don’t fall in that trap, lol.
Have you been to Atlanta, Savannah, or any other big city in GA? No one is banning EV’s there. And seeing as Elon is using the shit out of Austin and Florida for jobs and commercial space, no ban is happening there either.
All anyone (including almost everyone on this site) want’s is to not be forced into buying them, which we all know isn’t what’s happening. Companies are just taking advantage of free Federal money.
I tend to take a “prepare for the worst, hope for the best” approach to politics, but I won’t go any further on it here to preserve good discourse on automotive topics. I merely thought that given BEVs are a popular complaint that it might spur literal action. Most people were opposed to the TikTok ban, but it seemed to be getting closer to being law. Something, something, out of touch, stones + glass house.
Well, that tends to happen when you pay attention to the extra-loud minority that scream the loudest about anything and everything.
Not to mention it was started by Disney, who knew they could win the PR campaign, and also allowed them to hide really disappointing earnings numbers
Exactly. Things aren’t exactly magical up in the corporate offices. Divisions are shitting money, huge proxy fight etc. But, who needs facts when you can tug on the heartstrings of the sentimental irrationals?
Two of the poorest and unhealthiest states refusing tailpipe emissions reduction and more federal largesse in the form of EV tax credits because “freedum”? Yep, that tracks.
You forgot poorest states. Might as well throw Arkansas in there as well. Those folks can’t afford to rent a mobile home, let alone an EV. They don’t give no two shits about emissions.
Dammit, that was supposed to read poorly educated states. doh.
I don’t think I’m telling you anything you didn’t know already but those two things tend to go hand in hand
That’s the point, lol. Sometimes the extremely wrong-headed stereotypical takes around here astound me.
I think Texas is pretty safe from that. As moronic and sophistic as certain political elements in that state can be, their massive wind/solar power generation capacity put them in a pretty good position for benefit from BEVs. Then you got
all those pictures of Elon Musk in a cowboy hatthe Tesla and SpaceX presence in the state boosting their tech-cred.Well more than half of BMWs sales in the US were SUVs, the X5 & X7 are the best in class options you can buy and in some cases cheaper than comparables, especially the bloated POS big 3 ones. Not sure if all the X’s are in the light truck category. Plus their us sales (um leases) of EVs was over 12%.
BMWs plan for ICE/Hybrid/EV was put in place long before most and was flexible to shift as needed, unlike all the others scrambling to get their shit together now.
It’s weird where I live in that there are almost no BMW’s around. There are a ton of Lexus SUVs/coupes, Teslas, some Benzi, lots of Caddys/Vettes, and strangely, a ton of Mini Coopers. Those, along with the standard “Big Ass Donk” trucks and Harleys make up about 95% of road traffic from what I notice. In fact, I probably see more Slingshots than BMW’s. Either way, good for them that they are selling somewhere, providing jobs to some people in SC, NJ, and OH.
Said it before and will say it again, Matt. You are using Twitter wrong. It 100% can be an echo chamber for about any topic you want it to be, but it doesn’t have to be. Sure I dip my toes in Black Twitter, Music Twitter, Sports Twitter, Car Twitter, Author Twitter, Comedy Twitter, etc. but my personal feed has almost no two posts about the same thing in a row (unless it’s live updates about Detroit sports), and almost nothing that is “Trending” is anything I ever see. It’s not hard to avoid going down any one rabbit hole if you just don’t want to. Just saying. (once again)
“Why BMW Is The Only Luxury German Automaker Not Sucking Butt This Year”
Funny, they all look like they’ve been sucking butt…
All right stop what you’re doin’
‘Cause we’re about to ruin
The auto journo style that you’re used to
We write funny
But yo, we’re makin’ punny, see
So you car folks, I hope you’re ready for we
So gather ’round
We’re the new crew in town
And our mantra is that rust is brown
We’ll drink up all the damn Malört ya got on your shelf
Buying crapcan hoopties is a cry for help…
My name is Harty
My headlines are Farty
(that’s all I have the effort for, this Price Is Right episode is a nail-biter)
Bravo.
double bravo, I listened to this this morning, actually!!!!
Get Adrian or the bishop to re-work that top shot to remove the beaver face, maybe 90% reduction, something like the original 8 series would look 100% better.
Every time I go to my local Porsche dealer (admittedly, not often), they have almost nothing on the lot. You can blame it on the chips or the ports, but it has been like that for years. Any cars I want (911 T with manual trans) are factory order only with an 18-24 month delivery period, unless you want the one loaded 911 on the lot going for 50% over base price because of all the unnecessary options ($1000 carbon fiber shift knob) or an SUV.
Even the used CPO cars are sold before they arrive because the previous owner is waiting for their new car.
I’ve started looking at Corvettes.
It has always been like that since the 993 days. Funnily enough even fashion brands like Hermes are emulating them.
I’m not in the BMW target demographic at the moment, but compared the Audi E-Tron lineup, and Mercedes widely panned EQ models, no wonder BMW is selling EVs well. They hit the nail on the head of what EV Luxury buyers want, the exact same model, but with motors and a battery instead of ICE power. The EQS is an atrocious and horrendous product for the money by all accounts, but the i7 seems genuinely decent, because it’s just a 7-series, but electric. The EQS looks like the ugliest bar of soap of all time, and there is no A8/S8 E-tron to even compete.
I noticed a 7 series coming up on me in my rear view mirror when driving up to the eclipse the other day, and I immediately burst into laughter. Goddamn is that front end hideous.
My 5-year old daughter asked what I was laughing about, and I pointed to the 7er, now passing me. Her response “That’s not funny, that’s ugly.”
She’s got a point. And she didn’t even get to see the front of the car.
I dunno, man. As an engineer myself, you’re right about the neophyte part, but “engineer” and “irresponsible” are definitely not mutually exclusive. I’ve done a lot of dumb stuff since I got my degree.
There are book smarts, and other smarts. Most of the engineers I know may or may not struggle with the latter.
True but “engineer/family man who works at Apple” looks far more responsible than “Hold my beer YouTuber guy” to a jury. One look at the widow and orphans and Tesla was going to lose big.
Since YouTubers are a net deficit to humanity, if one bites the dust should the next of kin pay damage to Tesla instead?
I would also say that “allegedly felt comfortable enough to play a videogame” after putting on ‘Autopilot’ it would be very easy to paint him as irresponsible.
I mean, there’s a LOT of people out there with bad taste and/or vision impairments.
That being said, that 530e rental I had for the Lemons Rally kicked ass. My lone real complaint was an inconsistent pedal feel, but the rest of it? Comfortable, easy to use, easy on fuel and no hideous front-end treatment. Pretty much the ideal cross-country road trip car. I would not kick it out of my carport.
This is purely anecdotal, but I feel like I see more “normal” BMWs than I do the uglified sedans with big, stupid buckteeth. Some of those are legitimately ugly SUVs — like, my gosh, the X6 is one of the most ungainly vehicles I’ve ever seen in my life — but even that one seems relatively rare compared to, IDK, just a normal BMW SUV.
Anyway, I’m rooting for parsh. You know who makes cars I like to look at? Parsh. The 992 felt weirdly cheap on a few components, though, and maybe (probably not) they’ll take this as a cue to make more manual cars (I know, wishful thinking) or de-gigantify the 911 (also probably not). Look, HOPE IS DEAD. GIVE ME THIS ONE (er, technically two) PARSH THING[s].
I too love Parsh, but Parsh is too expensive compared to Ze other Germans. You’re basically paying $20,000 more than an X5 for a similarly equipped Cayenne. For the price of a barebones, 4 cylinder Macan you can get an X3 M40i with God’s own engine, the B58, that will wipe the floor with the poor Parsh in performance and, somehow, fuel economy. Obviously Parsh has nothing to compete with things like the 3 and 5 series either.
Porsche also doesn’t run specials at all. They don’t have good lease deals and they won’t really ever run low APR financing deals or put money on hoods. BMW will do both those things. The average Parsh buyer pays cash, whereas probably 75% of BMWs are leased.
If I were looking for a $60,000 luxury car my heart would scream HELL YEAH BROTHER IT PARSH TIME but my wallet would probably drop me off on a BMW or Lexus lot depending on what I’m looking for. A fun daily? BMW. A luxury appliance? Lexus.
okay, but hear me out:
parsh cute
(the heart wants what it wants)
Oh you’ll get no argument from me, and I will inevitably wind up owning either an eclectic older Parsh or an incredibly base spec Macan or Cayenne or something eventually. But I want the Parsh tax to pls stop. Yesterday.
As I said in my other comment…let’s see the leases on the new Macan EV! I want frozen berry metallic for like $600 a month. Pls gib PARSH.
Tesla settled because the facts looked bad for them, absolutely. Young successful family man drops his son off at day care and is commuting to his job at Apple when the Tesla Full Self Driving feature now know as FSD did some crazy shit and drove him into a barrier at 70MPH killing him.
They didn’t want the precedence and as long as they can keep paying people off they will. Except when the driver is doing something that makes them look bad to a jury, then they’ll just continue to litigate.
I gathered Tesla would have had a good chance of a Pyrrhic victory – they would have won because the dude was playing a video game when the car hit the barrier after all but the PR would have been a nightmare.
You couldn’t pay me to be seen in a modern BMW
I hate them, too, but I’ve got a price and I’ll bet you do, too. As for being able to pay that price? Dead on. I’m not that rich.
The worst game of would you rather:
A BMW i7 or a Mercedes EQS
The only winners? People who can’t see what’s going on.
But if you’re inside the BMW, you can’t see the outside of the BMW.
*rollsafe.gif*
You could pay me to be seen in one. It wouldn’t even cost you much. I wouldn’t buy one though.
Oh come on. Don’t act like you’d feel deep shame being seen in an M2, M5, Z4, etc. The beaver teeth grilles look absurd but they’re only on the 4 series, M3, 7 series, and IX.
I don’t feel bad for Audi, getting an allocation for any of their good stuff (RS) is like pulling teeth. I have had my deposit/spot in line for a year. Maybe build a few more so all of the people with deposits at dealers turn into real sales. You would think the RS stuff has a lot of profit margin built in and they would want to build as much to meet demand, but I guess not.
Wyoming already had a bill to do so, but they claimed it was only to prove a point and not something they actually wanted. Would be funny if they actually banned all EV and hybrid sales in their state and ended up with no new car sales in their state as a result (if everyone shifts to electrified, nobody’s going to bother making a straight gasser for one sparsely populated state).
Eek, a state with only used car dealers.
Seems like BYD may get the Wyoming market to themselves.
Everyone in Wyoming would start getting sweet no money down 12 month lease deals so the pre-owned gas car could then be sold in California.
Positive reinforcement for BMW to continue making ugly af vehicles
The last 2 new ones I saw on the road I almost did a spit take. One becuase of the nostrils/buck teeth. Looks even more bad in person. The second was an M something another SUV. It looked like it had some sort of body kit from the 90s. Even my wife was like wtf is that… I had to explain that some people like that sort of thing.
The B10 generation A/Q/S/RS5 is imminent, and the Q7 is also coming up on its 3rd refresh/facelift. I believe both of these are due within the next year or so. The B9 and 4M platforms are pretty long in the tooth, coming out in 16/17 depending on region, and they’re not really competitive anymore tech wise. People are holding out for the next gen or facelift. I’m sure the Q8, which is just a Q7 with a fashionable “sportback”, is eating plenty of Q7 sales too.
Yeah, the aging Audi lineup ain’t helping, agreed.
“BMW Is The Only Luxury German Automaker Not Sucking Butt This Year”
Kind of ironic, given that their new grill design looks like it could accept an ample set of butt cheeks.
You worded that much more elegantly than I would have.
something along the lines of, ‘Well, the front already looks like Ass…’
They’re embracing the strategy of being the butt to avoid sucking the butt.
Okay, but Chuck Tingle (author of such classics as Pounded In the Butt by My Own Butt) would absolutely write the hell out of Being the Butt to Suck the Butt.
Are we sure Chuck hasn’t already written that? It does sound like one of his titles.
I am not lol
There’s something about seeing these words in italics that makes me laugh.
I got that dawg in me (and by dawg, I mean many school years of writing in MLA style).
I don’t get why people hate it so much. I think they look fine. Distinctive, sure, but not bad. And being recognizable is a big part of marketing, isn’t it?
The tombstone grills do look considerably better in person, which, I think, is due to automotive press photos almost always being shot from ground level for some reason. The iX and i7 are awful, unfortunately.
If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.
Single point of reference. I freaking love my BMW iX. I got an M60 used for a great price a few months ago. It is by FAR the nicest, most comfortable car I’ve ever driven.
For the record, I am not against sucking butt if that is what you are into. The phrase just made me laugh this morning.
There was a guy that used to come to karaoke at a local bar. This guy had a water bottle, and on that bottle was a sticker. The sticker said “Legalize eating ass.”
I hope he’s doing alright and didn’t get hit by a new BMW, in which case the ass would have eaten him.
There’s a Yakov Smirnoff joke in there somewhere.
lol.