ALBRECHT GRAF GOERTZ TO CELEBRATE HIS 90TH BIRTHDAY

Munich - January 12, 2004 ... The creator of a BMW legend celebrates his
birthday today. Albrecht Graf von Goertz, who designed the BMW 507 sports car
in 1955, was born on January 12, 1914, the second son to an aristocratic family
in Germany. His parents were Else and Rudolf Graf von Schlitz gen. von Goertz
und Freiherr von Wriesberg. Albrecht and his two siblings grew up on their
parents' estate near Brunkensen (Lower Saxony), about 40 kilometers south of
Hanover. At the age of five, he discovered a passion for cars that would last
all his life. Goertz began designing cars from his youth-he still has some of
these early sketches.

After attending school, the young Count started an apprenticeship with the
Deutsche Bank in Hamburg in 1933. Within one year, he switched jobs and went to
the London-based private bank Helbert Wagg &Co. Unfortunately, his prospects in
Europe were not very promising. In 1935, Goertz applied to the American embassy
at Grosvenor Square for an entry visa to the USA. In the autumn of 1936, he
left Europe for New York City.

A distant relative in New York helped him when he first arrived, but soon the
young Count relocated to Los Angeles. To earn a living, Goertz worked at a car
wash, in a factory for aircraft engines, and at a flight service. The car
aficionado watched with great interest the emerging Hot Rod era and grasped the
opportunity in 1938. Goertz rented a garage and showroom located on Rodeo Drive
and began to modify Ford Model A and B models. On a Mercury chassis, he built
his first car, the curvy "Paragon" which was a two-door coupe with rear wheel
trims and unconventional rear side windows. Goertz convinced many to exhibit
this car at the World Exhibition in San Francisco in 1939.

In 1940, Goertz stepped aside from his fascination and served in the army for
five years. When he returned to Los Angeles, he took the Paragon out of the
garage, made all the necessary travel arrangements and headed for New York once
again. This would bring about a fateful turn of events that would soon change
everything for the young Count. In the parking lot of the world-famous
Waldorf-Astoria hotel, Goertz recalls, in his own words, what had transpired:
"There was a strange car in front of me, so I got out of my car to have a look
at the other car and the man sitting in it got out to have a look at mine. This
man was Raymond Loewy, a renowned designer". Loewy invited Goertz to his
office, sent him to a design college and gave him a job in the Studebaker
studio in Indiana shortly thereafter.

The Count, who had worked for three famous designers by 1953, soon set up his
own design business. Through his contact network, he got to know Max Hoffmann,
BMW's general importer in America. Hoffmann knew of BMW's plans to build a big
sports car and encouraged Goertz to contact BMW in Munich. Goertz sketched an
awesome vehicle and quickly won the bid. In less than 18 months, he designed
the BMW 507, the car that celebrated its world premiere in the New York
Waldorf-Astoria hotel in 1955. At the same time, Goertz designed an elegant
coupe that was also available as a convertible: the BMW 503. This four-seater
debuted with the BMW 507 at the 1955 Frankfurt Motor Show, where both
automobiles caused a sensation. Even today, the BMW 503 and the BMW 507 are
considered absolute dream cars. Sporty, elegant and also cultivated, they
represent the core attributes of a BMW car.

These designs had a leverage effect on Albrecht Graf Goertz's career: above
all, Japanese car manufacturers were frequent visitors to his New York design
studio. Sports cars, which enjoy world-wide success, as well as items of
everyday life (such as jewelry and furniture) bear his mark. The Count still
has a penchant for car design and has retained his restless spirit to this very
day: "I have always been curious and on the lookout for countries that offer
opportunities, countries where I have no cause for complaint".

Albrecht Graf Goertz still has some ties to the BMW Group- he regularly visits
the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, Europe's most important Design event.
This classic car meeting that also incorporates contemporary design prototypes
is taking place under the Patronage of BMW Group. His birthday party also will
take place at BMW: Albrecht Graf Goertz will celebrate his 90th birthday with
friends and family at the BMW Group Mobile Tradition Building in Munich.

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 Corp. 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.
# # #