100 years of the Ultimate Driving Machine

It is 2016, exactly 100 years since the BMW dream came about. In 1916, the Bavarian Motor Works was born in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, giving the world one of the most remarkable automobile experiences in history a century later.

The world already knows that BMW are manufacturers of luxury vehicles, sports cars, motorbikes, bicycles and powerful engines; also producers of Rolls Royce and Mini cars. What the world did not imagine was the grip with which the brand would hold the auto world by the jugular right from the outset.

In the world today, among aspiring youths and the bourgeoisie, there is exceptional love for, and confidence in the ultimate driving machine. Indeed, BMW is one of the reasons delivering for Germany the reputation for building machines of exceeding quality, excellence and performance.

I do not know too many people who would want to drive another brand of automobile after experiencing the BMW. It is the automobile brand of choice and of reference. In Jamaica for instance, BMW has variously been showcased as a status symbol, in music and movie; notably in the Jamaican Third World Cop movie and Beenie Man’s Sim Simma (Who am i?) music track.

One of the best-selling luxury automaker in the world, BMW is quite an inspiring automobile family, manufacturing cars that bring excitement at every rev, experience at every drive, and memories with every ride.

Growing up was full of aspirations, and driving, or better still, owning a car was surely one of them. In Nigeria, it was one of the indices for judging progress, even for measuring success. It only became a necessity much later.

By the turn of the new millennium, many youths had dreams of owning their own cars, but only a few of them actualized it before age 30. Luckily, I was one of them, buying a BMW 535i for N750,000. The benefits were emotional and somewhat ecstatic; confidence soared too.

Owning a car helped me get over the risk and stress associated with the mass transit facilities of that era. But owning a BMW placed me in the legion of the upwardly-mobile young urban professionals, creating the perception of a fledging career, and rightly so.  

At least, high-flying was the take-out, the carryout message that the new lifestyle of comfort, luxury, convenience and success delivered to family, friends and colleagues.

It is noteworthy that BMW sponsors Football, Golf, Tennis, and the Arts. It also sponsored the London 2012 Olympic Games and in 2010, it made a sponsorship deal with the US Olympic team.

As BMW continues to deliver leading technology and innovation to the world, I wish this Sheer Driving Pleasure another 100 years of absolute magic.

-‘Dele Dele-Olukoju