Auto Expo 2018: BMW group unveils a plethora of vehicles for India

Words by Afzal Rawuther

The BMW group pavilion at the Auto Exp 2018 bore witness to a lot of activity with a flurry of unveilings and some launches. First to start the last set of unveilings for the day was Mini. Mini launched the second generation Countryman today at the Auto Expo 2018.

The first Mini to be made in India, the Countryman is set to be launched with both petrol and diesel options and will be available in 3 trims. The Cooper S and the Cooper S JCW will be the petrol powered options while the Cooper SD will be the diesel powered version.

BMW Motorrad aims to sell 200,000 units a year by 2020 and India thereby is an important market for the bikemaker. And to that effect, G 310 R and the G 310 GS were expected to be launched at the Auto Expo. However, it has now been confirmed that those bikes will be making their way to India in the latter half of the year. BMW Motorrad showcased the G 310 R and G 310 GS. BMW has however launched the adventure tourers F 750 GS and the F850 GS at RS. 12.2 lakh(ex-showroom) and Rs. 13.7 lakh(ex-showroom) respectively.

In cars, the BMW i8 Roadster was unveiled and would be launched later this year. The 6-Series Gran Turismo was launched by Sachin Tendulkar. The petrol variant – the 630i –  will be available in the second half of the year and will be available for a sticker price of Rs. 58.9 lakh(ex-showroom). The i3 S was also unveiled and would be the only variant of the i3 to be sold in India.

The M5 too, has been launched in India at Rs. 1.43 crore(ex-showroom). With 592bhp on tap and a 0-100kmph tme of just 3.4seconds, it will be the most powerful M car in India. Also unveiled were the X3 and the X5. The X5 and X3 are new generation offerings and will be launched in India later this year.