In recent days Bernie Ecclestone has mentioned that BMW might be considering a return to Formula 1 racing. This has, inevitably, been denied by the Munich company’s motorsport people, who say that they are quite happy doing DTM and running Z4s in the American Le Mans Series. Be that as it may, there is a fairly decent business case for BMW to get back into F1 as an engine supplier.
The company’s 2012 financial year was the most successful in its corporate history, with new records achieved for sales volume, revenues, and earnings. The first quarter of 2013 has seen an increase in volume of five percent, although revenues went down slightly. The company invested heavily in new technology because of what it called “increasingly tough competition”. The firm still made a Q1 profit of $2.5 billion. The breakdown of sales showed an increase of three percent in Europe, five percent in the Americas and 9.5 percent in Asia. Russian sales grew by 21 percent. Thus the firm is expanding in all the markets where F1 is at its most powerful as a marketing tool.
In 2012 the US accounted for 18.9% of total BMW sales, China delivered 17.7% and Germany was only 15.6%. It is worth noting that the company is building a new factory in Brazil which will produce up to 30,000 cars per year. By the end of 2014, some 25 new models will have been added to the range, 10 of them totally new models. The company says that “with a view to global sales development, the company will continue its strategy of avoiding over-reliance on a single market or region”.
The conclusion that one reaches is that a global sporting programme would be of more value to BMW than its current sporting activities – if the board wants to move in that direction.
Sauber, in the meantime, is trying to negotiate a new engine deal for less than three years…