BMW Philippines offers Malaysia assembled 5 Series sedans

MANILA: Back in 2016, there were reports that BMW Malaysia is set to assemble sedans for export in other Southeast Asian markets, specifically to Vietnam and the Philippines, with a target date of 2018. The company was looking into exporting a left-hand drive specification of the 3 Series, 5 Series, and 7 Series. And now, we can finally confirm that Malaysia-assembled BMW 5 Series sedans are already available here in the Philippines.

What does this mean to potential buyers? If you are looking to buy a BMW sedan, say a BMW 520i, then there is a cost advantage because production would be cheaper, and duties and taxes will also be less because it comes from an ASEAN country. Both of which can be passed to end customers in the form of a more competitive priced car.

SMC Asia Car Distributors Corp President Spencer Yu confirmed the news saying, “There is indeed a cost advantage on acquiring vehicles from Malaysia like the BMW 520i Luxury… Taking into consideration critical factors such as production and shipping costs, we are able to realize marginal savings. SMC then passes on these savings to the customer allowing us to have the most competitive products in the segment.”

Yu also adds that with the benefit of ASEAN FTA, the BMW 520i Luxury, for instance, can be priced within the Php 4.5M range. That is already comparable to Japan-made Lexus GS350 priced at Php 4.89M, which gets import duty benefits from Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA). What’s more? Since the Philippines will be hosting the 2019 SEA Games and BMW’s participation as a mobility partner, the company can offer a limited number of its 520i Luxury with a Php 3.99M price tag.

The second question for would-be buyers is expectations. Would the Malaysian assembled vehicles be at par with those manufactured in Germany? Pinoy BMW customers need not fret. Yu assures that “Filipinos may expect that BMW vehicles assembled in Malaysia are engineered in true BMW fashion,

by a team of experts appointed by our executive office in Germany. This means that our discerning buyers may now purchase the best of BMW with the best value.” After all, BMW also has other plants worldwide that assembles vehicles that follow the same strict standard like the BMW plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, that assembles the X models.

BMW Malaysia Group MD and CEO Han Sang Yun guarantees that the BMW plant in Kulim, Kedah is competent to assemble and export to emerging markets in Southeast Asia. Also, it is ready to become a strategic hub in the ASEAN region.

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