BMW Group cleans up at Fleet News Awards 2009

BMW Group cleans up at Fleet News Awards 2009
25/03/2009

The BMW Group has been given a ringing endorsement by the UK’s fleet industry for its fuel-saving and emissions-reducing technologies by winning a string of prestigious awards.

The Fleet News Awards 2009 are judged by a panel of industry experts and the key decision makers in the corporate car market chose BMW and MINI vehicles for five of the possible 11 product awards. The MINI range was recognised as ‘Best Residual Value Star’, while the BMW 1 Series and BMW 5 Series were awarded ‘Best Small Premium Car’ and ‘BMW Executive Premium Car’ respectively. The new BMW 7 Series won its first UK award being crowned ‘Best Luxury Car’ and the BMW X5 won ‘Best Large SUV’.

Fleet News said the MINI consistently topped the charts for its strength in residual value performance that meant it was ‘one of the safest places to put your money’. Meanwhile, the four BMW winners were all praised for their strong wholelife costs, all round performance and owner appeal. BMW received particular praise for its choice of engines and body styles, and its targeting of the corporate customer with vehicles such as the 5 Series Business Edition models.

Stephen Chater, BMW UK’s Group Corporate Operations Manager, said: “This is a fantastic result and underscores the competitive advantage the BMW Group enjoys in the marketplace. No other premium car maker can match the BMW Group in terms of performance and emissions courtesy of our EfficientDynamics and MINIMALISM technologies across such a broad model range.”

As an example of the financial benefits such technologies have on the company car driver’s budget, the latest entry-level BMW 5 Series offers a possible £100 monthly company car tax saving compared to a similar model three years ago. In 2006 the entry-level model was a 523i SE which had a CO2 emissions of 205g/km and a comparative benefit-in-kind rating (BIK) of 29 per cent. This equates to a monthly BIK payment of £263*. In contrast the latest entry-level BMW 5 Series, the 520d SE, has CO2 emissions of just 136g/km and BIK rating of 18 per cent, equating to a monthly payment of just £164* a month.

BMW Group the premium sub 160g/km CO2 emissions leader

Following advances in engine technology the group now has the greatest number of premium vehicles below the 160g/km threshold. When the new Capital Allowances** and Lease Rental Restriction*** rules for companies come into force on 1 April, the BMW Group will have 115 distinct BMW variants and five MINI models that sit below 160g/km.

BMW also offers the top three most powerful models in the world with sub 160g/km CO2 emissions. The 330d Saloon, Touring and Coupé all come as standard with 245hp six-cylinder engines that record 152g/km (155g/km for 3 Series Touring). BMW takes six of the top ten places for sub 160g/km emission cars with the greatest engine output. The 123d three-door, five-door and Coupé come with 204hp four-cylinder twin-turbocharged engines but record CO2 emissions of just 138g/km.

Note:
* Figures quoted relate to a 40 per cent tax payer.
**For companies that purchase their company cars after April 2009 for any vehicle with emissions above 160g/km they will only be able to write down 10 per cent of its value each year on a reducing basis. However, if the car has emissions of 160g/km or less the Write Down Allowance doubles to 20 per cent, allowing the company to claim back the cost of the vehicle more quickly.
*** For companies who lease their company cars after April 2009 any vehicle with emissions above 160g/km they will only be to offset 85 per cent of the finance element of the lease against profits. However, if the vehicle has emissions of 160g/km or less, the company can offset 100 per cent of the finance part of the lease. The new legislation benefits all leased cars above £12,000 with emissions of 160g/km or less and will also benefit leased cars over 160g/km with a greater list price than £17,143 making it more attractive to Contract Hire high-end executive cars.