[The long haul]

Originally Posted by IS3andME

Here is the thing, the Gen 5.0 isn't a competitor to the 435i, so why even mention it with the 435i, which is a coupe? If anything it would be comparable more to the 5 series.
Of course the Gen 5.0 will be cheaper, as the BMW holds a premium over Hyundai's Gen line of cars---of which they seriously need to sub brand it and have dealerships for.

As to the question of how is Hyundais electric steering, it is brilliant. I often laugh about how much better it is than the F10s steering. It's overall a better car.

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by TheBingoBalls

This would be a better ideology if the "Rule of 60" meant you retired outright or took on a more "hands off/figurehead" type role (assuming your ego could take that). But if this pushes your best brains to the competition I'm not thinking its so smart. Hopefully part of the decision making process was to go to a car company that doesn't directly compete with BMW's demographic (ie Hyundai vs Audi or Mercedes). Not saying this is the ruination of BMW just saying as a management practice giving someone a shelf life that expires before their usable career life is up has the potential to backfire on you. There should be a non-competition clause in your contracts to protect this (although I've heard in North America at least those are rarely enforced, not sure about Germany or what happens when you go International).

[Falafel Combo]

Originally Posted by Vector Pilot

Biermann's departure may indicate BMW is in the process of a significant change.

Doubt it. He's one person in an organization. I'd struggle to make anything significant about it. His departure merely reflects that his ambitions are no longer aligned with said organization. People change jobs all the time. I doubt that he is a canary in the mine shaft, so to speak.

[SCOTT26]

Originally Posted by Smooth 330i

good read

http://blog.caranddriver.com/hyundai...hief-engineer/


Biermann knows the soul of BMW. The "rule 60" does not apply in this case. Every company has bylaws that can grant exceptions if critical talent and skill must be preserved. This applies to CEOs as well. Clearly he did not see the top exec shuffle as a positive sign based on this article. Sad news for BMW. Hyundai has no idea what they just got.

Car and who?
Another sensationalist piece of journalism to get the "enthusiast" riled up!
Besides new talent at M. Fedeli will be responsible for 7+.
The new models that will be decided above the 7er and i8.
Another announcement will be made in the run up to Geneva who is joining BMW. We lose but we also gain.

[acey81]

I sure wish the Ms would drive more like a 458. Sounds like a good swap.

[myzmak]

Originally Posted by Smooth 330i

good read

http://blog.caranddriver.com/hyundai...hief-engineer/


Biermann knows the soul of BMW. The "rule 60" does not apply in this case. Every company has bylaws that can grant exceptions if critical talent and skill must be preserved. This applies to CEOs as well. Clearly he did not see the top exec shuffle as a positive sign based on this article. Sad news for BMW. Hyundai has no idea what they just got.

BMW turfed last 2 CEOs under this rule despite their desperate and public efforts to remain. No exceptions there.

Also, of some interest is the 'crowning achievement' comment from Car and Driver....

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

Car and who?
Another sensationalist piece of journalism to get the "enthusiast" riled up!
Besides new talent at M. Fedeli will be responsible for 7+.
The new models that will be decided above the 7er and i8.
Another announcement will be made in the run up to Geneva who is joining BMW. We lose but we also gain.

Certainly this is not the best way to treat senior experienced passionate leaders with significant knowledge and it shows that the board does not care about the brand building. There are E30 M3's with a for sale price at $100K!? Do you think that F80 M3 will have the same asking price in 25 years?

Also, you can try to discredit C&D as much as you want but they've been around a long time and had nothing but the best reviews of E36, E46, E39, etc over 10+ years to the point that readers thought the reviewers and editors worked for BMW. You know this very well.

Changing and evolving is a natural process but it appears that BMW is more focused on short term financial goals than long term brand building. Wish you guys all the best but don't expect enthusiasts to stick around for much longer. This change is happening right now also.

Happy Holidays!

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by myzmak

BMW turfed last 2 CEOs under this rule despite their desperate and public efforts to remain. No exceptions there.

Also, of some interest is the 'crowning achievement' comment from Car and Driver....

One of the senior mechanics at my Indy bought Genesis coupe last year. This guy has access to some pretty good BMW deals yet he decided not to purchase them. I asked him how come you bought Genesis? He said reliability and performance value is tremendous and there is nothing at BMW that comes even close! BMW could not sell last model Z4's. It is one of the biggest flops. Simply unbelievable!!

[newBMWownr]

I sat next to Herr Biermann and his wife at dinner at an M-Power event in Marseilles a few years back. He is an absolute gentleman and a real car guy (probably obviously). He talked fondly about importing a late 60's/early 70's Oldsmobile 98 (IIRC) convertible from the U.S. to Germany. An absolute tank, but he was as fond of talking about that car as any of the M models he was involved with.

Hyundai/KIA are definitely pulling out the stops. I think they used Lotus for late-stage suspension tuning on the current Genesis. I wish him all the the best and continued success.

[5soko]

Such an incredibly sad day! Too many old school M guys leaving! As is the rawness of what made M cars so special and different from other cars on the road.

[Tyga11]

Pretty sure he went to Hyundai didn't he? Anyways, he will be missed