BMW Group steps up rapid pace of growth in electromobility and more than doubles sales of fully-electric vehicles in first quarter

Munich. The BMW Group more than doubled sales of fully-electric BMW and MINI vehicles worldwide in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same period last year (+149.2%). In the first three months of the year, the company sold a total of 596,907 BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles. With its broad portfolio of drivetrains with state-of-the-art technology having a positive climate impact, the BMW Group was able to cater to the different mobility needs of its customers worldwide. Com­pared with the same period of last year, which was the strongest first quarter in the company’s history, sales showed a moderate decrease (-6.2%). After a strong start to the year, in a highly volatile environ­ment, the combined effects of the geopo­litical situation in Eastern Europe and the Covid lockdowns in China overshadowed business develop­ment as the quarter progressed. Nevertheless, the company absorbed these impacts well overall.

“Our clear focus is on ramping up electromobility. In the first quarter, we stepped up the rapid pace of growth from 2021 even further and are fully on track to meet our ambitious growth targets for fully-electric vehicles in 2022,” said Pieter Nota, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Customer, Brands, Sales. “The demand for our emotional and innovative products with a wide range of drivetrains covering all customer needs, remains high worldwide. Thanks to this strong product line-up and our high level of flexibility and operational excellence, we expect sales for the full year 2022 to be on a par with last year, despite the challenging global environment,” Nota continued.

Company sets course for future European sales model

With the introduction of the BMW iX and BMW i4, the BMW Group has already significantly expanded its digitalisation of the customer interface and created the necessary conditions for effective, customised marketing of these two technology flagships. This results in a high order intake for both vehicles.

With its new sales and marketing strategy, the company puts the customer experience at the centre of its sales activities. In a next step, the BMW Group will cater to the changing customer expecta­tions, growing digitalisation and the expansion of online vehicle sales. “For the region of Europe, we believe the future lies in a new pan-European agency model. Our focus is on direct customer access with a high customer loyalty and a seamless, end-to-end digital and physical premium customer experience,” explained Nota. The BMW Group is now working out the details of this new model with its European retail partners. “We want our future sales model for Europe to be beneficial for everyone involved: for us, our partners in retail and, above all, for our customers,” Nota continued.

BMW brand sells over half a million vehicles worldwide

The BMW brand also performed well in the first quarter of the year, thanks to its fresh and innovative product line-up. The high level of customer interest was reflected in the sale of more than half a million vehicles (519,796 units) around the globe. The BMW 4 Series, which combines the brand’s hallmark driving pleasure with sporty elegance, delivered a particularly impressive performance: Sales for the first three months nearly doubled year-on-year, at 27,704 units.

BMW Group focuses on ramping up electromobility

Despite challenging conditions, the BMW Group succeeded once again in more than doubling its first-quarter sales of fully-electric vehicles from the previous year, with a total of 35,289 fully-electric BMW and MINI vehicles delivered to customers (+149.2%). Especially the BMW iX and BMW i4, which both will soon be available in markets worldwide, are making a significant contribution to the ramp-up of electromobility. In 2022, the company aims to again more than double its sales of fully-electric vehicles compared to last year.

The BMW Group is also setting itself higher targets for its BEV offering: This year already, including pre-series vehicles, the company will have 15 fully-electric models in production – serving around 90 percent of its current segments. In addition to existing models like the BMW i4, BMW iX and MINI Cooper SE*, this also includes four high-volume BMW model series: the BMW 3 Series and BMW 5 Series, the BMW X1* and the BMW X3. The new BMW 7 Series will also play a key role in 2022, with the launch of the new BMW i7*.

With this fast-growing range of products and strong demand for its new electric models, the BMW iX and the BMW i4, the BMW Group expects sales of its fully-electric vehicles to increase significantly: By the end of 2025, the company aims to have more than two million fully-electric vehicles on the roads.

Uncompromisingly geared towards fully-electric drive trains, the Neue Klasse will make a significant contribution to BMW Group sales volumes from the middle of the decade onwards.

The MINI brand will have an all-electric product range by the early 2030s, while Rolls-Royce will become an all-electric brand from 2030. All future new models from BMW Motorrad in the field of urban mobility will also be fully electric, like the BMW CE 04, the new electric champion for the city.

Customer demand for emotional BMW M products still high

With a total of 39,055 units sold in the first quarter of 2022, BMW M GmbH’s sales were up slightly on the previous year (+3,1%), despite supply shortages. Demand remains strong. The high-performance M3 and M4 models newly released onto the market last year continue to enjoy great popularity. In addition to the successful global market launch of the M240i Coupé* produced in Mexico, BMW M GmbH also marked another important milestone in its now 50-year history: In March, it introduced its first fully-electric, emotional BMW M Performance derivative, the i4 M50 Gran Coupé*. 2022 will be a special year for the M brand, which celebrates its 50th anniversary on 24 May.  

The MINI brand started the first quarter with a slight increase

The MINI brand delivered a total of 75,487 vehicles in the first quarter – slightly above (+1.1%) the comparatively high figure for the previous year. In the first three months of 2022, 8,925 fully-electric Cooper SEs* were handed over to customers worldwide. The MINI brand is already fully focused on the road to an all-electric future. The new MINI 3-door from the next model generation is currently undergoing winter testing. The new MINI family promises to maximise the customer experience by combining electrified go-kart feeling with digitalised touchpoints – with a clear focus on sustainability and a minimal environmental footprint.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars sees nearly 18 percent increase in sales

With 1,624 motor cars delivered to customers in the first three months of the year (+17.7%), Rolls-Royce Motor Cars achieved the brand's highest first quarter sales result ever in its 117-year history. There was high demand for all models, with customer orders now extending into early 2023. The company recently announced its first fully electric car, Rolls-Royce Spectre, which will come to market in Q4 2023; and that by 2030 all Rolls-Royce products will be fully electric.

BMW Motorrad: Strong first-quarter result confirms successful growth strategy

Between January and March, BMW Motorrad increased its sales by 11.3 percent to 47,403 units – its best-ever sales result for a first quarter. This performance provides confirmation of BMW Motorrad’s successful growth strategy. Both its compelling product offering, with a variety of different models, and the market launch of various new products should once again guarantee the success of BMW Motorrad.

BMW & MINI sales in the regions/markets

Working closely with its Chinese partners, the BMW Group was able to sell a total of 208,507 vehicles (-9.2%) in China in the first quarter, despite the challenging envi­ronment. Sales of fully-electric vehicles also performed well and were up 207.9 percent year-on-year. In addition to the iX and i4, the iX3* also contributed to this strong performance.

In the US, BMW and MINI deliveries increased by 3.7 percent to reach 80,590 units. This enabled the company to continue the sales momentum of the past year.

In Europe, combined sales for BMW and MINI totalled 220,076 units (-7.8%). With 8,410 fully-electric vehicles registered in the year to the end of March 2022, the German market contributed disproportionately to the BMW Group’s electro-offensive. In the first quarter of 2022, a total of 61,552 vehicles were registered in its home market.

BMW Group sales in Q1 2022 at a glance

BMW & MINI sales in the regions/markets

*Provisional registration figures

The delivery figures reported in this press release are provisional and may change up until the quarterly statement to 31 March 2022 is published. Notes on how delivery figures are prepared can be found in the BMW Group Report 2021 on p. 97.

*Consumption and emissions data:

MINI Cooper SE: Power consumption in kWh/100 km combined: 16.9-14.9 NEDC, 17.6-15.2 WLTP.

BMW iX1: Power consumption in kWh/100 km combined: 18.4-17.3 WLTP forecast based on the vehicle's development status to date).

BMW i7: Power consumption in kWh/100 km combined: 19.7-18.9 WLTP (forecast based on the vehicle's development status to date).

BMW M240i xDrive Coupé: Fuel consumption in l/100 km combined: 8.8-8.1 WLTP, CO2-emissions in g/km combined: 200-185 WLTP.

BMW i4 M50: Power consumption in kWh/100 km combined: 22.5-18.0 WLTP.

BMW iX3: Power consumption in kWh/100 km combined: 18.9-18.5 WLTP.

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The BMW Group

With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. The BMW Group production network comprises 31 production and assembly facilities in 15 countries; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2021, the BMW Group sold over 2.5 million passenger vehicles and more than 194,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2021 was € 16.1 billion on revenues amounting to € 111.2 billion. As of 31 December 2021, the BMW Group had a workforce of 118,909 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company set its course for the future early on and is making sustainability and resource efficiency the focus of the company’s strategic direction – from the supply chain, through production, to the end of the use phase, for all its products. 

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