Ladies and Gentlemen –
I would also like to welcome you here at our press conference in Geneva.
Very few automobile manufacturers place such an emphasis on engine production as the BMW Group does. It is all in the name: BMW stands for “Bayerische Motoren Werke“ or in English: “Bavarian Engine Plants”. So the core of our brand name is at the same time a BMW brand’s core competence: the development and production of engines.

Starting with the first BMW aircraft engines, BMW engineers managed to set height and distance records – a mere two years after the company was founded in 1916. Later, other vehicles caused sensations: first the BMW motorcycles – think about Ernst Henne’s 1937 speed record – and from the 1930s on cars as well.
Innovative, high-performance engines – this is what we are famous for. These engines are an important part of our history.
As BMW has long dealt with engine production, an amazingly varied range of different engines has been developed: just think about our 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12-cylinder engines. We always offer our customers the ideal engine for their vehicle. All our engines guarantee “the ultimate driving machine” and “sheer driving pleasure”. And of course, they all are known for efficient dynamics.
A modern day’s BMW engine has to meet three characteristics – namely
• sporting flair
• low weight and
• high efficiency.

This is the basic principle behind the entire range of BMW engines we are presenting here at our stand at the Geneva Motor Show. We are also showing some powertrain concepts, which are about ready to go into series production as well as some winners of recent engine contests.
I would like to give you some examples to demonstrate how we combine sporting flair and efficiency.
Among the varied range of BMW engines, the in-line six-cylinder engine occupies a special position. After all, close to 600,000 vehicles or more than 53 per cent of all BMW vehicles sold in 2005 sport an in-line six-cylinder engine.
Mounting our six-cylinder engines in-line clearly distinguishes us from competitors. And we have good reason for our special approach: Among six-cylinder engines, the in-line engine is clearly the one that runs most smoothly and that vibrates the least. It also has the highest potential for reducing fuel consumption and for charging processes. This can only be done thanks to the “hot and cold side” of this engine principle, which only exists in in-line engines – and at BMW, that is our six-cylinder. This clever and sophisticated powertrain concept has proved its worth since 1923 – so for over 70 years – when it was first mounted in a BMW vehicle. And there is still more potential to be tapped.