Click to enlarge, so to speak.
The first of the fourth-generation BMW 1 Series came off the production line at BMW Group Plant Leipzig today. BMW said it was a 120 model in Alpine White for a customer in Germany.* The new BMW 1 Series is due for market launch in October 2024. When first introduced in 2007, the 1-series was a successful bet that a small hatchback doesn’t need to equate to cheap.
“The new BMW 1 Series will remain a key factor in maintaining high capacity utilization here at plant Leipzig,” said Petra Peterhänsel, Plant Director. The strongest markets for the 1 Series have been Germany and Europe, and the UK and Italy.
The so-called premium compact is manufactured exclusively at Plant Leipzig, in Saxony, where up to 500 of the cars can be made per day. Combined with the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, BMW 2 Series Active Tourer and MINI Countryman, daily production from Plant Leipzig is as many as 1300 vehicles. Since t2007 the plant has manufactured more than 1.3 million in a range of variants. As at the end of June 2024, ~443,000 third-generation BMW 1 Series have been delivered to customers.
Since 2018 BMW Group Plant Leipzig has been upgraded. It can now produce up to 350,000 units a year – 100,000 more than previously. It currently manufactures four models with three different types of drive by two different brands – all on the same production line. Since November 2023 output has been boosted by the MINI Countryman. In addition another ~800 BMW vehicles are built daily.
The body of the new BMW 1 Series is available in a choice of two solid-color and seven metallic finishes. BMW Individual paintwork will also be available, along with a wide range of BMW Individual Special Paints. The new BMW 1 Series is the first BMW to have optional contrast paintwork, with a roof in high-gloss black. As with the MINI Countryman, the roof will be painted at Plant Leipzig using a new overspray-free painting. The method is currently being piloted and works without producing the mist of excess paint that usually occurs.
Inside, the new BMW 1 Series is completely leather-free as standard. The redesigned cockpit has the BMW Curved Display. The optional M Sport Package is available from at launch in Europe.
* The 1 Series has a combined fuel consumption: 6.0 – 5.3 l/100 km (62 miles); CO2 emissions combined: 135 – 121 g/km according to WLTP; CO2 classes D.
AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), 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.
Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures.
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 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.
First Gen Four BMW 1 Series Made in Leipzig
Click to enlarge, so to speak.
The first of the fourth-generation BMW 1 Series came off the production line at BMW Group Plant Leipzig today. BMW said it was a 120 model in Alpine White for a customer in Germany.* The new BMW 1 Series is due for market launch in October 2024. When first introduced in 2007, the 1-series was a successful bet that a small hatchback doesn’t need to equate to cheap.
“The new BMW 1 Series will remain a key factor in maintaining high capacity utilization here at plant Leipzig,” said Petra Peterhänsel, Plant Director. The strongest markets for the 1 Series have been Germany and Europe, and the UK and Italy.
The so-called premium compact is manufactured exclusively at Plant Leipzig, in Saxony, where up to 500 of the cars can be made per day. Combined with the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, BMW 2 Series Active Tourer and MINI Countryman, daily production from Plant Leipzig is as many as 1300 vehicles. Since t2007 the plant has manufactured more than 1.3 million in a range of variants. As at the end of June 2024, ~443,000 third-generation BMW 1 Series have been delivered to customers.
Since 2018 BMW Group Plant Leipzig has been upgraded. It can now produce up to 350,000 units a year – 100,000 more than previously. It currently manufactures four models with three different types of drive by two different brands – all on the same production line. Since November 2023 output has been boosted by the MINI Countryman. In addition another ~800 BMW vehicles are built daily.
The body of the new BMW 1 Series is available in a choice of two solid-color and seven metallic finishes. BMW Individual paintwork will also be available, along with a wide range of BMW Individual Special Paints. The new BMW 1 Series is the first BMW to have optional contrast paintwork, with a roof in high-gloss black. As with the MINI Countryman, the roof will be painted at Plant Leipzig using a new overspray-free painting. The method is currently being piloted and works without producing the mist of excess paint that usually occurs.
Inside, the new BMW 1 Series is completely leather-free as standard. The redesigned cockpit has the BMW Curved Display. The optional M Sport Package is available from at launch in Europe.
* The 1 Series has a combined fuel consumption: 6.0 – 5.3 l/100 km (62 miles); CO2 emissions combined: 135 – 121 g/km according to WLTP; CO2 classes D.
AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), 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. Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures. 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 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.