mikev said:
no. the 3-Series is aimed at the younger market. the guys who struck lucky in the stocks or internet boom. its the sporty fealng that some mid-life crisis candidates like. (but only the young can put up with rock hard suspension for 5 or 6 hours! (without groaning when they get out the car) the 5 and the 7 are aimed at the older market and the X is family cars that won't leave the school playground IMO the Z series (sorry big daddy ) is more of the mid-life crisis market than anyother!
Well, I'd like to pose a friendly challenge that stereotype. I know that it IS the sterotype somehow created in the corner bars, Japanese showrooms, TV shows, movies, etc, for years. I'm not trying to pick on anyone here! But that stereotype is outdated and wrong.
BMW has been targeting the younger market with the 3 series - From a senior official at Deutsche Bank (the people who fund BMW - he should know!):
“BMW’s target customer group used to be between 30 and 55 years old. Now, having the Mini, younger customers between 18 and 35 can also be addressed, who may switch over to higher-margin BMW products. The same idea applies to possible “1” series buyers, who might later buy a “3” series,” Berenberg Bank said.
BMW targets the 5 and 7 Series at older customers - From BMW VP of Marketing:
All wrong, if you ask BMW. Neither the car size nor the customer’s age or income is that closely related any longer, the company’s pundits say. What counts is the lifestyle that Bimmers, Minis and Rolls-Royces project: an identification with a desired social group and the resulting emotional gratification. “Such emotionality is the keystone of a deep and lasting customer loyalty relationship,” says Karl-Heinz Kalbfell, senior vice president for marketing.
Merrill Lynch analyst Gerhard Grueter doesn’t think that’s all just marketing talk. “They’re selling an emotional and aesthetic message and lifestyle,” he says. “They’re making customers into ambassadors of a brand. This is what Mercedes hasn’t managed with its A-class.”
Thus, the German carmaker has realized that younger and older people now have more consumption-oriented lifestyles and more disposable income than the industry has grown to expect. “BMW has rejuvenated its clientele, who used to be around 50 when they bought their first Bimmer. It has pushed the age register wide open to between 18 and 80 years old,” says Grueter. “Here, you’re talking about quite different volumes.”
Also note that he says the
average age of a BMW first time buyer used to be 50!
The "midlife crisis" thing is another stereotype created by Hollywood movies. I know lots of people with BMWs, I can't think of a single one who bought the car because of the "midlife crisis", especially the Z4.
From another article about Z4 marketing:
"BMW knew that the average work-hard, play-hard customer was 46 years old, with a median income of about $150,000. Two-thirds were male, married, and had no children.
The above is not a typical midlife crisis guy. The typical midlife crisis guy is stuck in a low to average paying, boring, run of the mill job with no future. Married, kids, college bills to pay and feels trapped like a rat, so they do something out of character - an affair, sports car, whatever.
I read an article in Motor Trend that talked about the 20 somethings always drooling over brand new sports cars and then being surprised when they find out the owner is 40+. It is the 40+ crowd that has the disposable, descretionary income to buy the new sports cars like the Z4. Most 20 somethings are raising families, buying houses, etc. and do not have the disposable income for a 2 seat car that you can't put a car seat in.
By the way, I drove 300 - 500 miles a day in the 330cic when I was in Germany and didn't groan once. My wife and I kept remarking how incredibly comfortable the seats were and how nice the suspension was.