Over the past two years, BMW Group Malaysia has been quick in introducing electric vehicles (EVs) from the Bavarian brand’s i line-up as well as MINI. In August 2020, the company introduced the MINI Cooper SE, and just shy of a year later, the facelifted model was launched. In August 2021, the iX was added to the local line-up, which was which was followed swiftly by the iX3 in October.
This year, the i4 eDrive40 M Sport was previewed in January before official pricing was announced in April, with a performance-focused version called the i4 M50 joining it May. Soon, the company will launch the i7, which was previously previewed and is currently open for registrations of interest – the flagship EV sedan was also sighted here recently in right-hand drive guise.
This push for EVs has certainly proved to be beneficial, as the company has revealed that over 10% of total deliveries for 2022 are already EVs. With several days left until we enter 2023, the company still has a bit of time before needing to provide a final tally for the current year, but it’s clear that BMW i and electric MINI products are well received by customers looking to make the switch.
Referring to historical figures, BMW Group Malaysia delivered a total of 10,500 vehicles across its BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad brands in 2021. That year saw 9,340 units of BMW (8,400 units) and MINI (940 units) vehicles sold, of which 1,680 units were electrified models that included not just EVs, but also plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).
Before that, in 2020, total sales reached 11,016 vehicles, with BMW accounting for 8,903 units and MINI with 987 deliveries – electrified models from these two brands accounted for around 2,200 units of the sum.
The warm reception to EVs offered by BMW Group Malaysia is most definitely encouraged by the reduced pricing brought on by the government’s EV incentives, which currently sees fully-imported (CBU) EVs be exempt from import and excise duties until December 31, 2024. The company is also upskilling its workforce to handle EVs and is active in engaging with various partners to grow local charging infrastructure.
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is their bmw i4 launch a fake launch? cannot buy, cannot see on the road
Cannot buy…your loan rejected?
Time to CKDs for electric BMW
ya…that’s because the do not have stock for most of their ICE car.
Not so, it is People choices, people’s opinion. But not no stock for most ICE car
Agreed. With Volvo already doing CKD for some Recharge models here, and BYD apparently gearing up to do so, the other manufacturers with established plants here should also seriously consider doing the same for longevity, or risk getting caught with their pants down once the excise duty exemption expires.