BMW has made the shock decision to cancel a production version of its burly-looking CS concept car. The announcement comes after the car wowed crowds at the Shanghai motorshow last year, and will be a big disappointment to many fans of the brand. The company had previously confirmed the car will make it to the showrooms.
The company's CEO Norbert Reithofer explained at a press conference yesterday that in the face of the global economic downturn, profitability has become more of a key concern than merely maintaining and sharpening the brand. He said that 'for the time being, we can do without this “brand shaper” since we have many others in our portfolio ... The sharper focus on profitability will result, amongst other things, in product decisions being revisited'.
BMW's last quarterly profits worldwide equated to just 1.3%, leaving considerably less cash for PR exercises and exotic cars. The carmaker first announced plans to turn the concept into a production car around September 2007, which if it had made it into production would have revived the range-topping 8-Series moniker.
Mr Reithofer added that the brand's priorities going forward would be more real-world models and green technologies, such as the 'EfficientDynamics' program and the Project i city car, and the possible revival of the once-iconic Isetta brand.