BMW GROUP DESIGN TEAM RECEIVES THE 2003 "GOOD DESIGN" AWARD FROM THE CHICAGO ATHENAEUM MUSEUM OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN

Product Design Award Given for the BMW 5 Series, BMW Z4 roadster, and
the BMW SlideCarver Munich/Los Angeles - February 17, 2004 ... From
toothbrushes and coffeemakers to electric razors and airplanes, the
judges of The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design
scoured the globe for products which met their exacting standards -
elegant, stylish and innovative enough to represent the pinnacle of
design achievement. The BMW Group was one of winners selected to receive
the Museum's prestigious 2003 GOOD DESIGN award, presented in the
product design category, for the BMW 5 Series, the BMW Z4 roadster and
the BMW SlideCarver. From the sporty yet elegant styling of the new 5
Series to the sexy, raw power of the Z4 roadster and the sleek, nimble
attitude of the SlideCarver, each of the products singled out by the
Museum cuts its own figure in the design world. With its muscular front
end to its unmistakable curved headlight clusters, coupe-like
greenhouse and signature trunk, the 5 Series exudes sophistication.
The Z4 roadster, a modern interpretation of the classic roadster,
features a long, sweeping hood and low seating position. Its design is
characterized by the intriguing interplay of convex and concave
surfaces, hard edges and curves that give the Z4 roadster its
head-turning appeal. Designed by the Design Team BMW Group in
conjunction with DesignworksUSA, the California-based international
strategic design consultancy owned by BMW Group, the SlideCarver
emerges through sculptural forms showing motion and featuring lines
that are accelerated and yet harmonious. The award was presented in
accordance with the Museum's belief that good design is not only
essential to the quality of life, impacting virtually all human
activities, but that emerging design can, in fact, be inspiring, raising
workaday existence to a more stimulating intellectual and emotional
level. "At BMW, it has always been our mission to evoke the joy,
exhilaration and pure thrill of mobility," said Chris Bangle, who
heads the BMW Group Design Team. "We are very pleased that our
pursuit to anticipate people's values creating iconic design has been
acknowledged by an institution dedicated to conveying to the public how
quality design enhances all aspects of the human experience." BMW
has always set itself apart from the industry with its commitment to the
belief that engineering and design excellence should be inextricably
linked. "The BMW Group's design has, quite simply, changed
people's expectations about automotive design," said Christian K.
Narkiewicz-Laine, President of the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of
Architecture and Design. "The designs of the BMW 5 Series, the
BMW Z4 roadster, and the BMW SlideCarver are sculptural, innovative and
elegant and are outstanding example of cutting-edge design." The
appreciation for these most recent BMW examples of innovative vehicle
solutions is being shared also by the public - in 2003, the new 5
Series enjoyed a dramatic 15 percent increase over the previous best
year in 2002, and the sleek new high-performance Z4 roadster captured
40 percent of the premium roadster market in the USA. A couple of weeks
after its US launch, the BMW SlideCarver, the new high-tech three-wheel
scooter engineered by BMW, is already becoming a favorite of the
cognoscenti. Founded in 1988, the Chicago Athenaeum Museum is
dedicated to the Art of Design in all areas of the discipline:
architecture, industrial, and product design, graphics, and urban
planning. The Museum's mission is the advancement of public education
about the value of Good Design and how design can positively impact the
human environment. As the nation's only independent Museum of
architecture and Design, The Chicago Athenaeum has demonstrated
leadership and innovation in bringing the subject of design and its
impact on the quality of life before a national and international
audience. BMW Group In America BMW of North America, LLC has been
present in the United States since 1975. ROLLS-ROYCE Motor Cars NA,
LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United
States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service
organizations for the BMW brand, the MINI brand, and the ROLLS-ROYCE
brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, an industrial design firm in
California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other
operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co. in South
Carolina is part of BMW Group's global manufacturing network and is the
exclusive manufacturing plant for all Z4 roadster and X5 Sports
Activity Vehicles. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in
the U.S. through networks of 340 BMW passenger car centers, 327 BMW
Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 148 BMW motorcycle retailers, 73 MINI
passenger car dealers, and 25 ROLLS-ROYCE Motor Car dealers. BMW (US)
Holding Corp., the BMW Group's sales headquarters for North, Central
and South America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.
Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via the
Internet at: www.bmwusa.com www.bmwmotorradusa.com www.miniusa.com
www.rolls-roycemotorcars.com # # # Journalist note:
Information about the BMW Group and its products is available to
journalists on-line at the BMW Group PressClub at the following address:
www.press.bmwgroup.com. # # #