BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT Weekend puts the spotlight on complete peace-of-mind motoring

BMW South Africa's concept of taking the best of its late-model trade-in or demonstration-model cars, refurbishing them to a very high standard, then returning them to the used car market was first adopted in 1998. Previously both the BMW and MINI brands operated under the banner of BMW Group Approved Used Vehicles, but as the national MINI car park grew, brand separation became increasingly necessary.

The programme was thus renamed BMW Premium Selection in October 2005 and was joined in the market place by MINI NEXT at the same time. Running as an independently marketed presence MINI NEXT has grown by a massive 60% since its initial introduction last year.

“Jointly BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT have achieved a 12.5% year-to-date growth versus 2005,” explains Neil Fiorentinos, General Manager: Sales and Distribution at BMW South Africa. “The success of the programme is also apparent when you compare the initial sales figures to current ones. When we first introduced our used programme in 1998 sales were in the region of 3000 units per year, compared to the 13 500 units we will sell by the end of 2006.

BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT:

Complete peace of mind

Buying a new car today, even with prices more or less unchanged for the past few years, still remains a heavy outlay even though a motorist receives massive peace-of-mind when buying new continues Fiorentinos.

“The BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT programme was designed to provide this same complete peace of mind to the consumer, with the added reassurance of manufacturer Motorplan,” he elaborates. “As such buying used  can sometimes offer an even better deal than buying new, especially for customers who want to enjoy the status of the brand while remaining mindful of a budget.”

All BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT vehicles are delivered with the balance of BMW’s Motorplan full maintenance and warranty contract to a minimum of one year or 25 000km. They also feature a full service history and mileage confirmation, a continuation of the BMW- and MINI-on-Call road-side assistance programmes, an accident management programme, and the offer of insurance and financial options through BMW and MINI Financial Services, including Prime Minus 5% on selected models.

“This stringent and comprehensive series of checks bring the vehicles as close as possible to new, providing customers with the complete confidence in the vehicles,” Fiorentinos reiterates. “In addition, BMW promises buyers the offer of a fair trade-in on any vehicle against a BMW Premium Selection or MINI NEXT purchase – none of which are more than five years old.”

BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT Weekend:

Special finance offer for one weekend only

Customers arriving at BMW and MINI dealerships on 25 and 26 November will enter dealerships, which have been completely transformed into BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT showrooms, with the knowledge that any purchase made on the weekend – on any used vehicle available – is subject to a special finance offer through BMW Financial Services. There will also be various prizes up for grabs and staff will be on hand to offer information and details on the benefits of buying a used BMW or MINI through the programme.

“The BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT Weekend has been designed to offer customers, both current  and potential, an opportunity to sample the various vehicles we have on offer and understand just how comprehensive the BMW Premium Selection and MINI NEXT packages are,” concludes Fiorentinos. “We strongly believe that our two brands are the best offerings within the South African used car market and the Weekend will give us the opportunity to showcase this.”

Dealer trading hours will be from 09H00 to 15H00 on both Saturday and Sunday, with full support from BMW Financial Services on both days. Further detailed information is available on www.bmw.co.za or www.mini.co.za.

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Corporate Communications

Guy Kilfoil, Manager: Automotive Communications

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