BMW M: The "fastest letter in the world" shows what it can do

At BMW M, the M stands for motorsport - the Munich-based company also refers to the M as the fastest letter in the world. For countless brand fans, however, the M also stands for magic, because the particularly powerful vehicles derived from motorsport exude a very special magic that can cast a spell over you. This is also reflected in the figures: "2024 was a very impressive year," says Sylvia Neubauer, Head of Customer, Brand and Sales at BMW M GmbH. "We ended the year with a total of 206,587 vehicles sold worldwide - that's an all-time high."

The best way to experience this magic is at one of the "M Driving Experience" events, which the manufacturer organizes around the world and which can be booked by customers. These events offer the opportunity to drive the fast models from Munich in a safe environment under professional guidance on well-known racetracks.

Brand experience in all its facets

We were able to try out this experience at a special, very exclusive event - the "M Experience Abu Dhabi" at the Yas Marina Circuit Formula 1 track. This event is primarily intended for important dealers of the brand, as an incentive event for high-caliber brand fans as well as important influencers and brand ambassadors from all over the world. BMW organizes such events at loose intervals every two years or so. It was a premiere in Abu Dhabi. And also for the first time, 99 lucky customers received a spot for this exclusive party - as well as a few representatives of the press.

The aim of the enormously elaborate event, which takes place over several weeks, is to bring the brand world to life for participants. This starts on a small scale, for example with an exhibition of all previous M5 models, with draped fan articles and brand gadgets here and there, accompanied by technical workshops and playful experiences in the digital world, on the racing simulator or in the completely crazy "Mixed Reality", where you race at full throttle through a virtual world with VR goggles on your head, but in a real car on a large empty field.

Above all, however, the focus was on the driving experience on the race track - many intensive laps in the M2, M3 Touring, M4, M5 and M5 Touring models on the Yas Marina Circuit, divided into small groups and expertly guided by racing professionals. Not only the exceptional driving dynamics and the high level of racetrack expertise of the Bavarian brand, but also the differences between the technical concepts of the various models were impressively experienced.

Important for customer loyalty

On the drag strip next to the circuit, the 5.11-metre-long plug-in hybrid SUV XM was then able to show what it can do when accelerating. The 550 kW/748 hp output and 1000 Nm torque of the top version Label Red in combination with the high-grip flooring are a real experience: the colossus, which weighs 2.8 tons empty, is already impressive on the road with a sprint time of 3.8 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h - on the drag strip, this is almost surreal. It is not only impressive that the large SUV completes these high demands on the material again and again in the same sprint time, but also that the model has a standard consumption of 2 liters per 100 kilometers in everyday use.

The "M Experience Abu Dhabi" was an impressive, but also enormously expensive event for the manufacturer. Is it worth it for the manufacturer? "It is not only important to step on the gas on the racetrack or on the road, but also as a brand," explains Sales Director Sybille Neubauer. "That's why we want to show what we are doing to further develop the BMW M brand. After all, a strong brand is the basis for growth overall and ultimately also for customers' willingness to pay a little more for a car."