BMW planning more performance models for India

With the flagship model of the M series the M6 Gran Coupe being launched, BMW is chalking out plans to bring more performance vehicles to India. Speaking to NDTV Auto, Philipp Von Sahr, President, BMW Group India says "BMW always starts with flagships, that's the all new BMW M6 Grand Coupe and there are some more cars coming during this year from the M family. We will do it one after the another, you saw them at the Auto Expo, we introduced four new models and then we will see what we will launch during the summer and autumn of this year."

On the M6 Gran Coupe, Philipp Von Sahr says, "The M models stand for being dynamic and innovative and this car stands for this and is also aesthetic. It is a four door coupe and has an excellent two twin-scroll 4.4-litre V8 engine which churns out a hefty 560 bhp and 680 Nm in torque. So acceleration from 0 to 100km/h in 4.2 seconds."

"So its like driving a perfect sports car but also has the usability of a limousine, good space, so you can make a longer journey. This carbon-roof is a very interesting material for the future, it is only 50% of steel weight and so you have no weight on the top of the car, you have all the weight on the bottom, so that's fantastic for the weight distribution and the driveability of this car."

The M6 Gran Coupe will roll out as a CBU and BMW says it is not looking to overstretch its manufacturing capacity at its Chennai plant.

Philipp Von Sahr says "Clearly the strategy is to have as much models as possible to be locally produced. But on the other side, some niche models when the volume is not so high and we look for CBUs. At the end of the year, 8 different BMW models including the New X5 and the 3 series GT will be produced in Chennai, much more than the competitors."

"We have to ensure we don't over stretch it because that then is a tough job for the plant in Chennai , we have to be very flexible with eight different models and we have increase our capacity in Chennai to 17,000 units per year."

BMW is also planning to bring the new 2015 Mini to India and the company is optimistic that the car will be launched later this year.