Two clear trends – SUV mania and electrification.
BMW Manufacturing led the nation in automotive exports by value for the seventh consecutive year, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce. BMW Manufacturing exported 218,820 Sports Activity Vehicles and Coupes during 2020 with an export value of more than $8.9 billion. The BMWs produced in Spartanburg, South Carolina, were exported through the Port of Charleston, SC (more than 189,000 units), and through five other southeastern ports: Savannah, GA; Brunswick, GA; Jacksonville, FL; Miami, FL; and Everglades, FL. More than 13,000 BMWs were also exported via rail. The top five export countries from BMW Manufacturing were China (23.3% of export volume), Germany (12.9%), South Korea (7.8%), Canada (6%), and Russia (5.3%). (AutoInformed on BMW Manufacturing Largest US Auto Exporter Again, Largest US Auto Exporter – BMW Manufacturing, China – Future Export Base for Global Markets?)
Spartanburg experienced a production interruption due to the coronavirus pandemic. After a five-week non-production period, associates returned for one shift on May 4. With new health guidelines and procedures in place, production slowly ramped up as the supply chain stabilized and customers returned in the summer. During the last six months of the year, Plant Spartanburg produced nearly 218,000 BMWs, a record for any six-month period in the factory’s history. The plant produced 361,365 vehicles for the entire year 2020.
The plug-in hybrid electric variants of the plant’s two most popular vehicles set production records in 2020. The BMW X3 xDrive30e (22,964 units) and the BMW X5 xDrive45e (24,248 units) achieved all-time highs, in part, because of a 2019 expansion of the battery assembly hall, BMW said. These 47,212 electrified BMWs made up 13% of the plant’s total production last year. BMW has assembled batteries for electrified vehicles since 2015, making BMW Group among the leaders of electro-mobility in the United States.
BMW Manufacturing currently produces about 1,500 vehicles each day, exporting more than two-thirds of its models to 125 global markets. The model portfolio includes five top-selling BMW X models, four Motorsport X models and two plug-in hybrid electric X models. The factory has a production capacity of up to 450,000 vehicles and employs more than 11,000 people.
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC is a subsidiary of BMW AG in Munich, Germany, and is the global producer of the BMW X3, X3 M, X5, X5 M and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles and X4, X4 M, X6 and X6 M Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 349 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 143 BMW motorcycle retailers, 117 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
BMW Largest US Automotive Exporter for 7th Consecutive Year
Two clear trends – SUV mania and electrification.
BMW Manufacturing led the nation in automotive exports by value for the seventh consecutive year, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce. BMW Manufacturing exported 218,820 Sports Activity Vehicles and Coupes during 2020 with an export value of more than $8.9 billion. The BMWs produced in Spartanburg, South Carolina, were exported through the Port of Charleston, SC (more than 189,000 units), and through five other southeastern ports: Savannah, GA; Brunswick, GA; Jacksonville, FL; Miami, FL; and Everglades, FL. More than 13,000 BMWs were also exported via rail. The top five export countries from BMW Manufacturing were China (23.3% of export volume), Germany (12.9%), South Korea (7.8%), Canada (6%), and Russia (5.3%). (AutoInformed on BMW Manufacturing Largest US Auto Exporter Again, Largest US Auto Exporter – BMW Manufacturing, China – Future Export Base for Global Markets?)
Spartanburg experienced a production interruption due to the coronavirus pandemic. After a five-week non-production period, associates returned for one shift on May 4. With new health guidelines and procedures in place, production slowly ramped up as the supply chain stabilized and customers returned in the summer. During the last six months of the year, Plant Spartanburg produced nearly 218,000 BMWs, a record for any six-month period in the factory’s history. The plant produced 361,365 vehicles for the entire year 2020.
BMW Manufacturing currently produces about 1,500 vehicles each day, exporting more than two-thirds of its models to 125 global markets. The model portfolio includes five top-selling BMW X models, four Motorsport X models and two plug-in hybrid electric X models. The factory has a production capacity of up to 450,000 vehicles and employs more than 11,000 people.
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC is a subsidiary of BMW AG in Munich, Germany, and is the global producer of the BMW X3, X3 M, X5, X5 M and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles and X4, X4 M, X6 and X6 M Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 349 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 143 BMW motorcycle retailers, 117 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.