Sebastian Coe visits the BMW Group in Munich.

Sebastian Coe visits the BMW Group. Two-time Olympic champion is fascinated by BMW Welt.

The BMW Group in Munich welcomed a sporting and political VIP from Britain: Lord Sebastian Coe, two-time Olympic champion and Chairman of the London Organising Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), visited the company headquarters on Tuesday. Accompanied by Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Sales and Marketing, Lord Coe toured BMW Welt and the BMW Museum in the morning before being given an opportunity to experience at first hand the future of zero-emission motoring during a test drive in the MINI E through Munich’s snow-covered streets.

At the London Summer Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012, BMW will be the official Automotive Partner, supplying around around 4,000 low-CO2 vehicles to LOCOG.

 Coe, who won a gold medal in the 1,500 meters in Moscow in 1980 and Los Angeles in 1984, commented on his visit: “BMW is an exciting company with an interesting history and fascinating products. I am impressed at how intensively BMW is tackling the challenge of sustainable mobility. As a former sportsman I am particularly pleased to see that sporty driving and environmentally friendly mobility need not be a contradiction. BMW shares our vision of sustainable Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.”

Robertson said: “Sportiness is the core of our identity and the core of the BMW brand. As the world’s most sustainable car manufacturer, we promote and support the idea of sustainable Games – be it in London in the summer of 2012 as Automotive Partner or in the winter of 2018 as National Sponsor. Accepting social responsibility is an inextricable part of our self-image. As a corporate citizen, the BMW Group with its customers and associates around the world stands for international understanding and intercultural exchange.”

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BMW Group model range voted most reliable in the UK.

Research into nearly 900,000 cars operated by the country’s biggest 50 leasing companies has found that BMW Group’s model range is the most reliable in Britain – for the second year in a row.



The FN50 reliability survey, undertaken by Fleet News and financial consultants Grant Thornton and covering 840,000 cars, asks leasing companies to assess reliability according to the number of breakdowns per model on their fleet. As the majority of the surveyed vehicles are used for business and so are subjected to higher than average mileage and are in constant use in all conditions. Such a testing environment means that winning the FN50 is a true testament to the reliability of a car.

To underscore BMW Group’s dominant position in this year’s survey the Group has three entries in the top 10 most reliable cars list courtesy of the BMW 3 Series (2nd), BMW 5 Series (5th) and MINI (8th).

Stephen Briers, Editor of Fleet News, said: “This is one of the largest vehicle reliability surveys of its kind and it reviews a market where cars are subjected to some of the most testing conditions they will ever face on the road. As a result, being listed anywhere in this table is a major achievement. However, to be named most reliable is a real testament to the hard work and commitment from a manufacturer to produce cars that British businesses can rely on every day.”

Steve Chater, BMW Group Corporate Operations Manager, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to win this award because the FN50 Reliability Survey is based on cold, hard facts, not opinion or interpretation. Leasing companies’ businesses rely on having extremely accurate information on the operational performance of the cars they lease, so when they say you are the most reliable, it is definitive. Having won a number of environmental awards in the past year for EfficientDynamics, it is gratifying to see that we are also leaders in another vital area of the ownership experience.”

FN50 Survey results
Most reliable car manufacturer
1 BMW
2 Honda
3 Audi
4 Toyota
5 Volkswagen
6 Mercedes-Benz
7 Ford
8 Mazda
9 Nissan
10 Skoda

Most reliable car
1 Honda Civic
2 BMW 3 Series
3 Honda Jazz
4 Honda Accord
5 BMW 5 Series
6 Audi A4
7 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
8  MINI
9 Toyota Avensis
10 Volkswagen Golf

Further information on the FN50 survey can be viewed at www.fleetnews.co.uk.

BMW Group tops CO2 cutting chart.

Kent BMW are pleased to announce that for the second year in a row the BMW Group has cut its average CO2 emissions per car by more than any other automotive manufacturer. According to an independent report published by the European Federation for Transport and Environment, the average reduction across the industry was 3.3 per cent, while BMW Group achieved 10.2 per cent.

BMW Group’s success in reducing CO2 is thanks to its EfficientDynamics programme which incorporates a wide variety of fuel-saving and emissions-reducing measures across the whole vehicle range as standard. Many of its competitors sell fuel efficiency packages as options.

EfficientDynamics technology includes Auto Start-Stop, Brake Energy Regeneration and Active Aerodynamics, amongst a wide range of other features. This technology gives BMW and MINI owners outstanding fuel economy and low emissions without forsaking driving enjoyment. The result is the reduction of BMW Group’s average vehicle emissions in 2008 to 154g/km, down 10.2 per cent from 172g/km in 2007. With the introduction of further efficient BMWs in 2009 this figure is expected to drop again.

GreenFleet Awards success for BMW
As further recognition of the class-leading position BMW Group vehicles command courtesy of EfficientDynamics technologies, the marque has scooped two more prestigious awards. The UK fleet industry presented the BMW Group with Fleet Car Manufacturer of the Year and the Industry Innovation Award.

The former award was bestowed in recognition of the car manufacturer that had shown the greatest improvement in CO2 emissions, had expanded its range of low emission vehicles or offered alternative fuel vehicles. It is the second year in a row that the BMW Group has been award top honours in this category. The Industry Innovation Award was presented to the BMW Group because it had introduced new technologies that had such a significant impact on fuel consumption and emissions.

Most sustainable car company in the world
BMW has also been named the “Most sustainable car company in the world” in the latest Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the fifth year in a row. Since its inception in 1999 BMW is the only automotive organisation to have featured every year on the index.

This is the latest accolade in a string of environmental awards, most recently including Green Sports car and Executive car of the year awards at the What Car? Green Awards, Green Initiative and Manufacturer of the year at the BusinessCar Awards 2009 and the Special Editor’s Award for EfficientDynamics technologies at the Auto Express New Car Honours.