PressClub United Kingdom · Article.
WINTER NEWS IN BRIEF UPDATE FROM BMW.
Tue Nov 30 20:30:00 CET 2021 Press Release
• Top Gear names BMW i4 ‘Saloon of the Year’ • Expansion of seven new UK eDrive Zones • BMW named ‘Most Reliable Carmarker’ at Fleet News FN50 for seventh consecutive year • Success for BMW 745Le at Professional Driver Magazine’s Car of the Year awards • 4 Series Coupé victorious at Scottish Car of the Year Awards 2021.
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Chris Overall
BMW Group
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Chris Overall
BMW Group
• Top Gear names BMW i4 ‘Saloon of the Year’
• Expansion of
seven new UK eDrive Zones
• BMW named ‘Most Reliable Carmarker’
at Fleet News FN50 for seventh consecutive year
• Success for BMW
745Le at Professional Driver Magazine’s Car of the Year awards
•
4 Series Coupé victorious at Scottish Car of the Year Awards 2021.
As 2021 draws to a close, BMW is ending the year with a further
set of awards for products across the range, including the BMW i4, BMW
4 Series Coupé, BMW 745Le and BMW 3 Series. It also took home ‘Most
Reliable Brand’ at the 2021 Fleet News FN50, celebrating the brand’s
success in the corporate sector.
Top Gear crowns BMW i4 ‘Saloon of the Year’.
The first fully-electric Gran Coupé from BMW – the
BMW i4 – has been crowned Saloon of the Year by Top Gear.
Editor Jack Rix commented "We love the i4 because it could
be any other well-specced BMW. The way the furniture’s arranged around
you, the way it steers and drives. It’s low-slung and sporty and
there’s just a certain rightness and cohesion to it. Even if the
all-drive chassis doesn’t exactly play for laughs, it’s more fluent
than the Tesla or Polestar equivalents”.
The striking gran coupé introduces all-electric mobility to the
heart of the BMW brand, combining next-level performance with modern
comforts to deliver a truly outstanding driving experience. Equipped
with fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology, the BMW i4 delivers up to
544hp and offers up to 367 miles in range (WLTP).
Expansion of seven new UK eDrive Zones.
Adding to its success, a further seven eDrive Zones have been
rolled out in the UK, taking the total number of eDrive Zones across
Europe to 138.
Aberdeen, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Coventry, Oxford and
Sheffield have all been added, joining the long list of zones already
established in the UK. BMW eDrive Zones automates the process of
switching to electric-only power when a BMW plug-in hybrid vehicle
enters a defined area of these cities. The service, unique in the
worldwide automotive industry, also automatically ensures that the
electric power is conserved for use during the part of the journey
within the low emission zone, if the journey destination is entered
into the vehicle’s navigation system.
This new technology ensures BMW plug-in hybrid models offer
consumers the best of both worlds: electric-only driving in the city,
where it makes the most difference and a highly efficient internal
combustion engine to cover long distances.
For BMW plug-in hybrid owners, the expansion of these areas
allow drivers to earn additional BMW Points – a programme launched
earlier this year to reward drivers for driving electrically. Drivers
earn 2 points for each mile driven electrically and 4 points for each
mile driven electrically in a designated eDrive zone, with drivers
rewarded with free charging to be used across the BMW Charging network.
BMW named ‘Most Reliable Carmaker’ at Fleet News FN50 for
seventh consecutive year.
BMW took home two awards at the 2021 Fleet News FN50,
including ‘Most Reliable Car’ for the BMW 3 Series and the highly
coveted ‘Most Reliable Carmarker’.
The Fleet News FN50 is conducted annually and offers
analysis and insight into the UK’s contract hire and leasing industry.
Alongside the top 50 countdown, Fleet News reward outstanding
achievements within the sector, including Customer Service, Wellbeing
and Vehicle Reliability.
Editor in Chief Stephen Briers commented; “BMW has been voted
the most reliable car manufacturer in the UK by FN50 leasing companies
for an incredible seventh consecutive time, backing up its similar
success in the fleet-voted Fleet News manufacturer of the year award.
It’s no surprise as the 3 Series was named the UK’s most
reliable car and the 5 Series also sits inside the top 10, in sixth
place. Both models have seen significant enhancements in recent years
elevating their reliability. In a clean sweep at this year’s FN50, BMW
was also named the best car dealer network, making it an ideal partner
for UK business.”
Success for BMW 745Le at Professional Driver Magazine’s Car of
the Year awards
Britain’s professional drivers have voted the plug-in
hybrid BMW 745Le as 2021’s best chauffeur car.
Professional Driver Editor Mark Bursa said: “Chauffeurs are
still waiting for truly effective electric cars, so plug-in hybrids
are still the only real option for those looking for a cleaner option
than diesel. This is always a close contest, but this year we had a
clear winner. Spacious, good-looking and incredibly smooth, the BMW
745Le is our Chauffeur Car of the Year for 2021.”
The Professional Driver Car of the Year Awards, now in their
12th year, are among the most rigorous in the automotive industry.
Every shortlisted car is delivered to our venue for evaluation by more
than 100 judges, comprising invited heads of leading chauffeur and
private hire firms, experienced chauffeurs, as well as carefully
chosen motoring editors and journalists.
4 Series Coupé victorious at Scottish Car of the Year Awards 2021.
The BMW 4 Series Coupé has been crowned Executive Car
of the Year at the 2021 Scottish Car of the Year Awards. Voted for by
members of the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers (ASMW), the 4
Series Coupé finished at the top of its category after the judges
compared notes and awarded the best models they have driven in 2021.
Launched in October 2020, the BMW 4 Series delivers both
stunning performance and supreme handling capabilities, but with a
sleek and distinctive new exterior design, high quality interior,
upgraded driver assistance technologies and even greater efficiencies
from the introduction of the mild-hybrid technology.
Ends
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 2020, the BMW Group sold over 2.3 million passenger vehicles
and more than 169,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in
the financial year 2020 was €5.222 billion on revenues amounting to
€ 98.990 billion. As of 31 December 2020, the BMW Group had a
workforce of 120,726 employees.
The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term
thinking and responsible action. The company set the course for the
future at an early stage and consistently makes sustainability and
efficient resource management central to its strategic direction, from
the supply chain through production to the end of the use phase of all products.
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For further information please contact:
Helen Wilson
Senior Press Officer, BMW & MINI
Communications
Tel: 07815 372 480
Email: Helen.Wilson@bmw.co.uk
Chris Overall
BMW Media Relations Manager
Tel: 07815
370 990
Email: Chris.Overall@bmw.co.uk
Emma Begley
General Manager, Communications
Tel:
07815 371 062
Email: Emma.Begley@bmw.co.uk
Graham Biggs
Corporate Communications Director
Tel:
07815 376 867
Email: Graham.Biggs@bmw.co.uk