6 minute read • Ultimate Life Changer
Innovation – The New Kind of Luxury
For BMW, luxury means so much more than heated leather seats and polished hood ornaments. Luxury is having the opportunity to dream. To reinvent. To strive for something better.
However, this kind of luxury does come at a price. The new M5 sedan, for example, will set you back a cool $225,000.
Or, for the price of two takeaway coffees, you could put yourself in the running to win it and a new BMW X5 M50d SUV in our Ultimate Life Changer Lottery. With a total prize value of $500,000, that would be quite a good return on your investment.
BMW’s on-going investment into research and development and continual reinvention has established the brand as a global innovator.
With a proud history, steeped in tradition – the BMW logo has only subtly changed in over a century – it’s the company’s ability to think outside the box that sets it apart.
From the avant-garde architecture of their flagship buildings to their socially-driven research and development, BMW whole-heartedly embraces the pursuit of innovation far beyond the world of automotive.
How does BMW itself sum up that sense of direction and purpose? One word: courage.
It would seem an appropriately chosen one too.
In 1985, when the rest of the world was caught up with the excess of the 80s, BMW established a think-tank known as BMW Technik. Without the limitations of commercial development, BMWs best designers, engineers and technicians have the freedom to develop ideas and concepts for the vehicles of the future. One of the future fruits of BMW Technik was the ground-breaking Z1 Roadster.
The following year, BMW went a step further, establishing the Research and Innovation Centre, bringing all of BMW’s research and development work under one roof in Munich. A first for the automotive industry, the Centre brought together around 7,000 scientists, engineers, designers, managers and technicians to work together as part of an integrated team.
The facility was officially opened in 1990, and today more than 9,000 people work there.
BMW has further expanded its commitment to innovation, through the Eberhard Von Kuenheim Foundation, established in 2000. Named in honour of former BMW Chairman Eberhard Von Kuenheim, the Foundation’s purpose is to develop and test new solutions to modern-day problems in the fields of education, work and sustainability.
In fact, sustainability has been on the agenda at BMW for quite some time, with the manufacturer being named the world’s most sustainable automotive company in The Dow Jones Sustainability Index every year since 1999.
But still not satisfied, BMW is working hard to improve the efficiency of existing fossil-fuel powered models, while also pursuing electric, hybrid and even hydrogen fuelled models.
With a history of such extensive research and development, it’s fair to say expectations are high when you finally do get your chance behind the wheel of a ‘Beemer’.
They are the ‘Ultimate Driving Machines’ after all.
Is the BMW M5 the Ultimate Driving Machine? If you’re lucky enough to win our Ultimate Life Changer Lottery you’ll have the opportunity to decide for yourself.
Sit in the driver’s seat of an M Class and the slogan seems pretty accurate. With the M standing for ‘Motorsport’, BMW’s M Class models are specifically modified, high performance vehicles, just as at home on the track as the open road. In fact, all M models are track-tested and fine-tuned at BMW’s private facility at the Nürburgring racing circuit in Germany.
The BMW M5, considered the benchmark in high performance sedans, certainly seems to be pushing the limits into the red zone. It’s almost too much car to handle. Almost.
With previous M5 models, there has been a genuine debate around whether it is in fact too powerful.
BMW listened and, true to form, have found a very satisfying solution.
With the addition of the M xDrive system, including 4WD, 4WD Sport and 2WD modes, the all-new M5 really delivers. Use 4WD mode when you’re after optimal traction and controllability, 4WD Sport mode for agility on the track and 2WD when you want the pure exhilaration of rear-wheel drive.
The indulgent sports interior of the M5.
If our Ultimate Life Changer Lottery winner chooses the BMW prize option (and let’s be realistic, why on earth wouldn’t they?) they will not only receive the keys to an M5 (valued at $225,000), but also a BMW X5 M50d (valued at $185,000). Time to clean out the garage. Described by BMW as the ‘master of multi-tasking’, the X5 delivers an outstanding level of luxury and performance whether it’s on or off-road.
In true BMW fashion, when the very first X5 was unveiled in 1999, it represented not only a new direction for BMW, but also a whole new car class – the Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV). Combining sports performance with the capabilities of an all-wheel-drive vehicle, the SAV, or ‘crossover’ as it is known by other manufacturers, has become a genuine category in its own right.
In the X5 M50d, world-leading technology comes standard.
The BMW X5 – luxury and performance rolled into one.
For example, BMW’s Driving Assistant is able to detect the risk of a collision with vehicles or pedestrians and has the ability to apply the break in the event of an emergency. When driving at speeds above 70km/hour the Driving Assistant is also able to warn the driver of an unintentional lane change (i.e. microsleep) via a slight vibration in the steering wheel.
Hill Descent Control is also a standard feature in the X5, ensuring that the vehicle can negotiate the steepest downhill runs automatically and safely at just above walking pace, without the driver having to brake.
Going off-road? No one said you had to rough it.
Add the exclusive M Performance features and the X5 M50d is literally ahead of the pack. The TwinPower Turbo six-cylinder in-line diesel engine rockets to 100 km/h in just 5.3 seconds. But don’t be alarmed. Kitted out with the xDrive system, you’ll remain in control of the vehicle, if not your bladder.
With a mission ‘to become the world’s leading provider of premium products and premium services for individual mobility’ and boldly planning the next 100 years, it’s exciting to think what’s next for BMW.
One thing is for sure. Owning a BMW isn’t just an investment in your ‘driving pleasure’, it would appear it’s also an investment in our
Imagine owning, not one, but two ‘Ultimate Driving Machines’
If you do decide to invest $10 in our Ultimate Life Changer Lottery and win the ultimate driving prize, there’s one thing you’ll need to work out: which one really is the ‘Ultimate Driving Machine’? The M5 or the X5? They can’t both be the ultimate… or can they?
If you’d really like to be the one to make that decision, get in early and buy your ticket today.
Life-changing in more ways than one.
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