ALPINA was active in BMW tuning and motorsports from the 1960s onwards and began manufacturing passenger cars based on BMW AG products in 1978.
The BMW Group said in Munich today that is buying the ALPINA brand. BMW AG and ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG* have reached an agreement to this effect that likely will secure the future of the ALPINA brand, as well as the Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH und Co. KG.
The existing cooperation will continue in a different form: The company owned by the Bovensiepen family will continue to use its engineering expertise in developing, manufacturing, and selling BMW ALPINA vehicles within the existing agreement until the end of 2025.
This results in ‘base’ BMW cars receiving extensive modification by the ALPINA – including the engine and transmission, as well as the chassis, aerodynamics, and interior equipment. BMW ALPINA vehicles are pre-assembled on BMW production lines before final assembly of the vehicles taking place in workshops in Buchloe, also with individual interiors built to customer specifications.
The transformation towards electromobility as well as increasing global regulations worldwide on greenhouse gases and emissions l, software validation and requirements for driver assistance and monitoring systems – result in significantly higher risks for small-series manufacturers. The management of ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG said it is addressing this with a strategic realignment that will secure the long-term viability of the Buchloe operations.
Andreas Bovensiepen, co-managing director of ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG, said: “We recognized the challenges facing the automotive industry early on and are now setting the right course for ALPINA and for our family firm, BOVENSIEPEN. This marks the beginning of a new chapter. Both the ALPINA brand and our company are extremely desirable. We made a conscious decision not to sell ALPINA to just any manufacturer, because BMW and ALPINA have worked together and trusted one another for decades. That is why it is the right decision strategically for the ALPINA brand to be managed by the BMW Group in the future.”
*ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG, a German vehicle manufacturer based in Buchloe, was officially founded on 1 January 1965. ALPINA was active in BMW tuning and motorsports from the 1960s onwards and began manufacturing passenger cars based on BMW AG products in 1978. Since 1983, the company based in Buchloe in the Ostallgäu district of Bavaria has been registered as an official automotive manufacturer with the German Federal Motor Transport Authority in Flensburg and employs around 300 people. Around 2,000 vehicles were produced in Buchloe in 2021. In addition to Germany and Europe, Japan, the US, and the Middle East are also important markets for ALPINA. The family company’s second main area of activity is the ALPINA wine business.
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 Group Buys Customizer ALPINA
ALPINA was active in BMW tuning and motorsports from the 1960s onwards and began manufacturing passenger cars based on BMW AG products in 1978.
The BMW Group said in Munich today that is buying the ALPINA brand. BMW AG and ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG* have reached an agreement to this effect that likely will secure the future of the ALPINA brand, as well as the Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH und Co. KG.
The existing cooperation will continue in a different form: The company owned by the Bovensiepen family will continue to use its engineering expertise in developing, manufacturing, and selling BMW ALPINA vehicles within the existing agreement until the end of 2025.
This results in ‘base’ BMW cars receiving extensive modification by the ALPINA – including the engine and transmission, as well as the chassis, aerodynamics, and interior equipment. BMW ALPINA vehicles are pre-assembled on BMW production lines before final assembly of the vehicles taking place in workshops in Buchloe, also with individual interiors built to customer specifications.
The transformation towards electromobility as well as increasing global regulations worldwide on greenhouse gases and emissions l, software validation and requirements for driver assistance and monitoring systems – result in significantly higher risks for small-series manufacturers. The management of ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG said it is addressing this with a strategic realignment that will secure the long-term viability of the Buchloe operations.
Andreas Bovensiepen, co-managing director of ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG, said: “We recognized the challenges facing the automotive industry early on and are now setting the right course for ALPINA and for our family firm, BOVENSIEPEN. This marks the beginning of a new chapter. Both the ALPINA brand and our company are extremely desirable. We made a conscious decision not to sell ALPINA to just any manufacturer, because BMW and ALPINA have worked together and trusted one another for decades. That is why it is the right decision strategically for the ALPINA brand to be managed by the BMW Group in the future.”
*ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG, a German vehicle manufacturer based in Buchloe, was officially founded on 1 January 1965. ALPINA was active in BMW tuning and motorsports from the 1960s onwards and began manufacturing passenger cars based on BMW AG products in 1978. Since 1983, the company based in Buchloe in the Ostallgäu district of Bavaria has been registered as an official automotive manufacturer with the German Federal Motor Transport Authority in Flensburg and employs around 300 people. Around 2,000 vehicles were produced in Buchloe in 2021. In addition to Germany and Europe, Japan, the US, and the Middle East are also important markets for ALPINA. The family company’s second main area of activity is the ALPINA wine business.
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.