BMW has announced that the new 7th generation BMW 5 Series will be produced at the company’s Dingolfing Plant in Lower Bavaria and at Magna Steyr in Graz. Production of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan will ramp up before the end of the year, ready for market launch in early 2017.
In preparation for the new model, there has been extensive refurbishment and construction in all technologies at the Dingolfing plant. Several hundred million euros have been invested in measures including a new body shop to the west of the plant and restructuring of drivetrain unit installation at the vehicle assembly facility.
“Dingolfing will remain our competence centre for production of upper-class BMW series,” according to Oliver Zipse, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Production. In addition to manufacturing all BMW 7 Series and BMW 6 Series models, the site will continue to produce all variants of the new BMW 5 Series and also serve as the lead plant for the BMW 5 Series’ international production network. For the first time, additional units of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan will also be built by Austrian contract manufacturer Magna Steyr AG & Co KG at their plant in Graz.
“The high level of flexibility within our global production network and reliable cooperation with our partner, Magna Steyr, will enable us to respond swiftly to the strong customer demand we anticipate for the world’s most successful business limousine,” adds Zipse.
The BMW 5 Series has been the market leader in the premium upper-class segment for many years, with more than 347,000 units sold in 2015.
Integration of new BMW 3 Series and 4 Series models means that production volumes at the BMW Group plant in Dingolfing have risen significantly. As a result, the site now produces around 350,000 vehicles per year. “The decision to build 3 Series and 4 Series variants here proves that we are competitive and makes us less dependent on the lifecycle of our large model series,” explains Dingolfing Plant Manager Josef Kerscher. However, as a consequence of this successful growth, the plant can no longer accommodate the expected volumes alone. Nevertheless, the bulk of the BMW 5 Series models will still be produced in Dingolfing.
“We are delighted to have a highly-professional partner like Magna Steyr produce this successful model for us. They will certainly benefit from our years of experience building the BMW 5 Series: Our staff here in Dingolfing will work very closely with the plant in Graz,” adds Kerscher.
The BMW 5 Series Sedan is the second BMW model to be produced by the Austrian contract manufacturer; the first was the BMW X3, which was manufactured by Magna Steyr between 2003 and 2010. Magna Steyr currently also builds the MINI Countryman and the MINI Paceman for the BMW Group. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan production at Magna Steyr will begin in early 2017.
