There are two potential new BMW financial services products under consideration which, if approved, would be great news for the legion of BMW customers who lease BMWs or purchase certified pre-owned (CPO) BMWs.

BMWFS is currently considering a BMW backed 1) excess wear and tear policy for lease customers, and 2) extended CPO warranty.

The BMW excess-wear-and-tear policy would be appropriate for lease customers who tend to drive and use their BMWs hard or simply want the peace of mind from knowing that they won’t be nickel and dimed for wear and tear upon lease return inspection.

The CPO wraparound warranty would allow CPO customers to buy extended coverage beyond the current standard 6-year/100,000-mile CPO warranty.

“We’re in our due diligence” on those products, says Shaun Bugbee, vice president of … CONTINUED

Set your DVRs! On July 13, CNBC will air its documentary on BMW, where it will go inside BMW “to discover the essence of one of the most successful brands on earth where every dimension of the cars and company is engineered in search of perfection.” Sounds like a can’t-miss program to us.

BMW Group sales reach all-time high in the month of June. Deliveries increase by 15.9% to 165,855 vehicles in June
Best first six months ever with 833,366 units sold
Record sales in first half year for all three brands.

Munich - July 7, 2011… The BMW Group delivered more vehicles in June than ever before in a month. A total of 165.855 BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles were sold, which is an increase of +15.9% on sales in June last year (prev. yr. 143,156 units) and also a new all-time high. The company also achieved a new high for the first six months: Group retail volume for the year to the end of June increased by more than 137.000 units to 833.366 vehicles, which represents … CONTINUED

According to Autonews, citing Germany’s Manager Magazin (which cited BMW company sources), BMW’s goal is to sell 2 million cars annually by 2016 and upwards of 2.5 or 2.6 million vehicles by 2020.

BMW sold 1.46 million vehicles in 2010 (source), so these goals would represent an increase of over half a million annual vehicle sales over just four years time and over 1 million annual vehicle sales increase in eight years.

How does BMW plan to achieve these lofty sales figures? With a focus on its new range of small cars, which will include the future range of FWD BMWs, and electric vehicles (including the i3 and i8).

To accomodate the expected large increase in production, BMW will be adding to its production capacity aggressively by opening new … CONTINUED

The BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported June sales of 26,865 vehicles, an increase of 15.1% from the 23,331 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago.

Year-to-date, BMW Group is up 18% on sales of 143,521 in the first six months of 2011 compared to 121,585 in the same period in 2010.

“With all that’s gone on in the world in the last month, our own economy and auto market are still volatile places so you’d better have the right models and business strategy to attract customers in this environment,” said Jim O’Donnell, CEO, BMW of North America. “We’ve been fortunate to have both and that’s why we’re in the market leading position for the first half of 2011 and more new … CONTINUED

BMW has just launched its first 2012 Olympics commercial, promoting the BMW Drive for Team USA, a national drive program that invites consumers to get behind the wheel and the Olympic Movement in support of U.S. Olympic Team and Paralympic Team hopefuls. The event series travels to 276 BMW retailers across America between June 16 and August 13, 2011. For each participant who test drives a vehicle at one of the BMW Drive for Team USA events, BMW of North America will donate $10 to Team USA, up to a maximum donation of $200,000. Funds raised will work to further the training and performance goals of Team USA athletes.

Most successful May ever for BMW Group sales

Solid double-digit growth across Europe, America and Asia

The BMW Group is well on its way to a record year with another all-time sales high for the month of May. A total of 147,563 BMW, MINI and Rolls Royce brand vehicles were delivered to customers (prev. yr. 120,850/ +22.1%). Deliveries for the year to the end of May climbed 20.7% to 667,511 vehicles (prev. yr. 552,866).

Ian Robertson, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Sales and Marketing: “This was the most successful May the company has ever reported in sales. Our young vehicle portfolio continues to perform strongly and we are seeing healthy balanced growth worldwide. There is a strong demand for BMW X … CONTINUED

BMW today announced that it was ranked first overall in the inaugural L2 Prestige 100® Facebook IQ, a new index that measures the aptitude of Prestige 100® brands across auto, beauty, fashion, watches & jewelry and spirits & champagnes categories on the world’s fastest growing platform. BMW owns and maintains 54 separate Facebook pages pertaining to its various geographic regions, business segments and products, each of which were evaluated for this study.

“BMW is the ultimate social machine,” says Maureen Mullen, Director of Research and Advisory at L2. “The brand’s global page plays host to 5.5 million fans, and registered the highest engagement rate in the Index. With another 50+ Facebook pages catered to local markets and specific models BMW is driving away from the competition.” … CONTINUED

BMW of North America today announced a national campaign comprised of television, print, online and radio advertising and a strong in-dealership message, all timed for the summer season and designed to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. The campaign, themed “DON’T TXT & DRIVE - When the Engine Starts the Texting Stops,” begins in early June and runs throughout the year.

“Distracted driving is an epidemic in America, and it has deadly consequences for thousands of people on our roads each year,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Putting a stop to these needless deaths, as well as hundreds of thousands of injuries, will require everyone to take personal responsibility for safe driving. I am grateful to BMW for their efforts to raise public awareness … CONTINUED