[DaveN323i]

I hope the link works. It deals mainly with BMW's business in Asia. I doubt we'll ever have a 3 series exported from Thailand, though.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/30Jul2002_biz60.html

 

[Mr Paddle.Shift]

I doubt too.

Thing is demand for BMW in Asia is extremely high. Excluding Japan from the picture, Taiwan, China, Singapore are huge markets for BMWs. So the expansion is justifiable.

Last I heard, BMW is planning to open a plant in China too.

 

[SONET]

I doubt too.

Thing is demand for BMW in Asia is extremely high. Excluding Japan from the picture, Taiwan, China, Singapore are huge markets for BMWs. So the expansion is justifiable.

Last I heard, BMW is planning to open a plant in China too.

Hmm... I don't know that I would call the demand extremely high. Perhaps compared to the supply the demand is high. But looking at the numbers posted by 'RS2' a while back...

BMW sales in 2001 by markets

Worldwide 880,688

North America
USA 213,127
Canada 12,702

Europe
Germany 240,910
Great Britain 80,228
Italy 46,015
France 35,514
Spain 29,715
Belgium 23,740
Switzerland 14,576
Sweden 7,748

Africa
South Africa 19,174

Asia
Japan 35,777
China 5,742

Assuming these numbers are correct, it seems that Asia (as represented here) only makes up a small fraction of BMW's sales. Taiwan isn't listed (as a Republic, is it included with China perhaps? With these numbers I would hope not), but on my three week stay in Taiwan I saw many Mercedes but very few BMWs.

If you consider that China has 1.3 billion people and only 5,700 bought BMWs there in 2001, while Sweden has roughly 9 million people and they purchased 7,700 cars from BMW... I think that puts the demand into perspective. Though the market is expanding in China and there is lots of potential, with less than 10% of BMW's cars being sold in Asia in 2001 it seems that BMW would probably be looking to build a facility in China for cheap labor, not becase the demand in Asia was so great. :dunno:

Just a wild guess...

--SONET

 

[jxwuman]

well. .i think, atleast in taiwan, that the main reason not many asian people buy BMW's is the fact that they are extremely overpriced. in taiwan, that is the case, where an equivalent bmw would be roughly twice as pricey as a bmw in the usa. therefore, the more elderly people, hence the people w/ the checkbooks to afford such cars, would opt for a more prestigious mercedes. i recently rode in a friends 2000 320i, the pricetag which was roughly 1,800,000 nt, roughly 55k. therefore, i would imagine that a 325ci here would be roughly 60-70k, nearly double what i paid in the US.

 

[jxwuman]

oh, sorry, and additionally, in china, i think the government has a special contract w/ vw/audi and therefore, as i noticed when i recently visited beijing, their is a considerable amount of vw's and audis.

 

[JetBlack330i]

Taiwan isn't listed (as a Republic, is it included with China perhaps? With these numbers I would hope not), but on my three week stay in Taiwan I saw many Mercedes but very few BMWs.

I heard that in Taiwan, MB is associated with prestige while BMW is associated with gangsters and the like.

 

[jxwuman]

something along the lines of that, although ironically, the cops on the only freeway tend to drive 5-series in order to keep up w/ the speeding youth. . .also, ironic, in that most of the politicians, who happen to be gangsters too, ride in mercedes while their body guards and lackeys tend to ride in 5-series.

 

[LIL RAJA]

I heard that in Taiwan, MB is associated with prestige while BMW is associated with gangsters and the like.

hahahah. that's kewl. Gangsters drive BIMMERZ.
I think beside US everywhere else people see Benz as more prestigious car. As a little kid I iived in Saudi Arabia, where most of the people drive Mercedes, I hardly ever remember seeing bmws.

lil raja

 

[ayn]

I heard that in Taiwan, MB is associated with prestige while BMW is associated with gangsters and the like.

haha, where ya heard that man? well... that is "sorta" true I guess... I probably wouldn't buy a BMW if I were in HK or TW, it'll be a total waste. There are A LOT more MBs than BMW over there, that's for shure!

--Andrew

 

[JetBlack330i]

haha, where ya heard that man?

I heard it during my last visit to Taiwan.
Oh, another thing I noticed, most BMWs I saw in Taiwan has an ///M badge. I didn't see any, zero, zilch, nada, M3's. Just plenty of badges. It's just fashionable, I guess. Kinda like debadging is fashionable in Europe.

 

[jxwuman]

actually. .head out to taipei, u should see plenty of m5s. . its juss. . . the economy here currently is atrocious.