Many us on this side of the Atlantic who drive BMW X vehicles are fortunate. Our X3s, X4s, X5s, and X6s that are produced at BMW Plant Spartanburg arrive at our local dealerships using overland transportation, or we pick them up directly at the BMW Performance Center in Greer, South Carolina. The rest of the world has to wait a little longer, since their Sports Activity Vehicles and Coupes travel to their countries by sea, on ships that load up and depart from the Port of Charleston in South Carolina.
How many new X owners have had to endure that extra ocean transit time? As of March 17, 2016, 2,000,000 of them.
On that day, BMW Manufacturing and the South Carolina Ports Authority celebrated the 2,000,000th BMW as it was loaded aboard the Wallenius Wilhelmsen’s roll-on, roll-off car-carrying ship Elektra docked at Charleston’s Columbia Street Terminal. BMW Manufacturing President Manfred Erlacher and Ports Authority President and CEO Jim Newsome rolled the BMW X5 up to the loading point, where longshoremen took over and drove it aboard the Elektra. This particular BMW X5 will be sold in Germany and the new owner will receive a commemorative photo of the March 17th celebration.
Watch the 2,000,000th BMW arrive at port with Erlacher and Newsome in this video:
Since the Spartanburg plant opened in 1994, it has become the largest BMW manufacturing facility in the world. BMW is the largest exporter of automobiles from the United States to overseas markets by dollar value. In 2015, BMW exported $10,000,000,000 worth of vehicles overseas and every one of them was built at Spartanburg and shipped through Charleston.
BMW employs 8,000 workers at its Spartanburg complex in Greer, South Carolina, and 20,000 more people work at companies supplying BMW with parts and services.
“BMW has become part of the fabric of this great state,” said Manfred Erlacher, the president of BMW Manufacturing. He added, “From my side I can promise you two things: Many more BMWs are coming and it won't take 20 years for the next 2,000,000th.”
BMW has led other carmakers to realize the advantages of building vehicles in South Carolina. Mercedes-Benz builds Sprinter vans in Ladson, and Volvo is constructing a $500,000,000 factory in Berkeley County that is expected to employ up to 4,000 workers.
If you buy a BMW off the dealer’s lot, your gratification is instant. But when you custom order your Bimmer exactly how you want it, you must wait, since it will arrive via ship from Europe or South Africa. You know how agonizing the wait can be, especially if you use the BMWUSA.com web site or customer service phone number to check on your vehicle’s progress every day. Those of us who have endured this process can empathize with BMW customers around the world who have waited for their X-vehicle-carrying ship to come in. All 2,000,000 of them.—Scott Blazey
[Photo and video courtesy of Charleston Business Journal.]
