n the fall of 2026, BMW dropped a bombshell that didn’t quite send the shockwaves it should have throughout the automotive industry, and that’s probably because it was firstly presented to its shareholders, and secondly because it was dressed as a brilliant cost-saving measure for the future.

      

Before jumping into the following diatribe, I should probably first present the facts in the way that they were presented by BMW itself in a press release at the end of September, 2026. In short, the main story was centered about a restructuring program that was announced at BMW Group’s Capital Market Day, which is nothing out of the ordinary in this day and age, when “cost-cutting,” “spiralling market share” and “falling profits” are some of the most used expressions in any automotive corporate meeting in Germany.