The BMW 2 Series Coupe has been given the honourable art car makeover to celebrate the Mexican plant’s relationship with the German manufacturer. It has also been done to commemorate the start of production for the new compact coupe.
The BMW 2 Series Coupe art car was designed by Potosi Bosco who has become renowned for creating plastic artwork, together with associates of the plant’s painting area, Luis Esquivel and David Fernandes. For this design, colour plays a fundamental role as it represents both Mexico and Germany. At the front, the Mexican and German flag are applied to reflect “power of both countries in terms of engineering, design and perfection”. The color orange was included to symbolise the marigold flower which is commonly used in the altars of the Day of the Dead.
A couple of human silhouettes symbolise the engine of the organisation, its collaborators who, after working shoulder to shoulder, celebrate this achievement of creating the first BMW vehicle born in Mexico for global markets.
Bosco says, “What I tried to do through this work was to translate the colors of Mexico and integrate it into the spirit of the car. This intervention is totally different from what I am used to doing. That is why it was very important to work together with Luis and Daniel, who supported me with their technical experience. I am very grateful to the BMW Group for trusting my ideas,”
The technical creation proved to be a great challenge, since the BMW 2 Series Coupe sports a bodystyle with curves and low relief. As a result, up to five coats of some colours were applied. For this specific work, eight different colors were used which amounts to 6,1-liters of automotive paint and 2,5-liters of clear coating.
The application of the paint on the BMW 2 Series Coupe was done manually inside the paint booth at the plant’s training centre. Each colour was applied individually and left to dry of 30 minutes between each coat. In addition, it required strict control of humidity, temperature and air purity to maintain the quality of the painting.