BMW finally explains why the grilles are so big (and they have no regrets)
Big is good
Beaver teeth, pig snout, alpine nostrils – we’ve seen all sorts of nicknames for the big BMW grilles go by. Such criticism is part and parcel when you take a new – rather extreme – direction as a brand. At BMW, they are not lying awake because the design was a conscious decision. “We thought carefully about this step,” says design boss Adrian Van Hooydonk.
Conscious choice?
You have to realize that BMW designs cars for a global market. And what Europeans may find ugly, they feast on in other places. In some parts of the world everything is about standing out and exuding status. Take China, for example, now BMW’s largest market. In 2023 BMW will sell more than 826,000 cars there, almost a third of its worldwide sales. And precisely there, according to BMW, customers love large, imposing grilles. A hefty grille exudes status and luxury – exactly what many Chinese customers are looking for in a premium car. “In certain parts of the world, such as China, people actually demand large grilles,” said Van Hooydonk.
Excellent sales figures
So BMW does not regret its bold design phase at all. Indeed, the sales figures prove that it worked. While the Internet raged about the “mega kidneys,” the showroom simply filled up. “We took the negative comments seriously, but we didn’t see it reflected in the numbers,” says the designer. “On the contrary, in fact.”
More than looks
The large BMW grilles had not only to do with taste, but also, according to the brand, with technology. Behind the plastic of the grille today are numerous sensors, radars and cameras needed for driver assistance systems and semi-autonomous driving. So the grille became not only a style element, but also a functional part of the car.
New direction with Neue Klasse
Yet the days of overly large noses seem to be over. With the arrival of the Neue Klasse, the brand is opting for a more subdued style. The new iX3 shows that the “kidneys” are still present, but are now more tightly and flatter integrated into the front. According to Van Hooydonk, this is not a penance, but an evolution. “The biggest mistake you can make is not to change,” he says. BMW wants to remain modern without losing its identity.
Also see: ‘BRILLIANT move by BMW?!’ – the iX3 ‘Neue Klasse’ is surprisingly different – AutoRAI TV