The head of BMW in Australia has admitted that some markets have shown “very high-level interest” in a luxury bakkie from the Munich-based automaker.
BMW Australia managing director Marc Werner made the comments to motoring.com.au at the Frankfurt Motor Show after another high-ranking executive took a pot shot at the new Mercedes-Benz X-Class, branding the luxury bakkie “appalling”.
Werner (who last year said that the brand was watching the bakkie market “closely“) told the Australian publication that the motivation for BMW to build a pick-up truck to rival the X-Class would have to come from key markets, including South Africa.
“It has to be a collaborative approach across Australia, South Africa, Russia, Brazil … those kinds of markets where the pick-up segment is almost exploding,” Werner said.
“There is a very high-level interest in those markets,” he admitted.
Werner added that if the Bavarian automaker were to build a luxury bakkie, it would have to “drive like a typical BMW and also has to fulfil the true BMW genes”.
He went on to say that if BMW customers wanted a bakkie, the brand had a “responsibility” to deliver.
“BMW should not exclude itself from leading in the market. We have a responsibility to fulfil customer needs.”
