Head of BMWNA Product Planning and Strategy/BMW Motorsport Manager Martin Birkmann

[smokinjoe64]

Pretty telling interview from a guy influencing the NA product lines from some years to come.
...some good - - some not so good; particularly his take on the fate of the 6MT going forward.

http://www.bimmerfile.com/2010/01/12...rtin-birkmann/

[mkoesel]

mapezzul, any chance for a text version? If not I'll just wait 'til I get home I guess.

[smokinjoe64]

...didn't see text capability from Bimmerfile.

[Green///Hell]

X5/X6M not in the core of the M brand duh
I hate how BMW recognizes that its "inevitable" to go FI just because strict emissions laws
Seems like an easy way out in engineering by just moving their whole M brand into Forced Induction, instead of trying for NA and making it work

Customers straying from 6MT so if the market gets small they will phase out 6MT entirely this sucks

[Technic]

Originally Posted by Panda///Monic

X5/X6M not in the core of the M brand duh
I hate how BMW recognizes that its "inevitable" to go FI just because strict emissions laws
Seems like an easy way out in engineering by just moving their whole M brand into Forced Induction, instead of trying for NA and making it work

Customers straying from 6MT so if the market gets small they will phase out 6MT entirely this sucks

Trying + making it work = millions of dollars.

That's why.

[mapezzul]

We are working on transcribing it... not sure when it will go live.

-Michael

[Eau Rouge]

Originally Posted by smokinjoe64

Pretty telling interview from a guy influencing the NA product lines from some years to come.
...some good - - some not so good; particularly his take on the fate of the 6MT going forward.

http://www.bimmerfile.com/2010/01/12...rtin-birkmann/

Excellent interview! Thanks for linking.

What I understood MB to say about MT was that it would be offered in fewer models, but wasn't going to be "phased out" unless customer demand for manuals became such that it would no longer be worthwhile for BMW to bother equipping models with the MT.

Martin noted that NA is M's largest market with the most interactive-craving drivers in the world who demand manuals.

Rather amusing was his comment in the vein....sequential, DCT, it's all the same. Automatic.

[mapezzul]

Originally Posted by Eau Rouge

Excellent interview! Thanks for linking.

What I understood MB to say about MT was that it would be offered in fewer models, but wasn't going to be "phased out" unless customer demand for manuals became such that it would no longer be worthwhile for BMW to bother equipping models with the MT.

Martin noted that NA is M's largest market with the most interactive-craving drivers in the world who demand manuals.

Rather amusing was his comment in the vein....sequential, DCT, it's all the same. Automatic.

Yes- it is sad but true that the manual is going away because of consumers and not necessarily the brand.... try finding a 6MT on a lot to test, darn near impossible.

Sad