bmw malaysia 2014 briefing 1a

The BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo is set to be the next BMW model to be locally assembled in Malaysia - the 3 GT will be the 14th locally-assembled model when production begins in Kulim sometime mid-year.

The announcement as made earlier today at a media briefing on the automaker's sales performance for 2013. No indications as to the 3 GT variant/s slated for local assembly - when it made its local debut in June last year, the car was introduced in its 328i GT form. There's also the 335i, 320i, 320d and 318d GT to pick from.

The choice of the 3 GT, a rather niche product, may come as a surprise, but BMW Malaysia says that its introduction is in line with its strategy to offer a diverse range of products for consumers. The company added that an announcement on model type/s as well as pricing will be made closer to production.

bmw malaysia 2014 briefing 2

BMW Malaysia also announced 2013 as a record-setting year - the company sold a total of 7,974 BMW, MINI and Motorrad vehicles in the country last year, a 14% jump from same period in 2012, when it delivered 6,988 vehicles.

In terms of best-sellers, no surprise to find that the F30 3 Series led the line, followed by the F10 5 Series. The third best-selling model was the F25 X3 SAV. The brand also mentioned that its dealership network grew from 16 BMW and four MINI dealerships in 2012 to a total of 36 dealerships across the country in 2013. The total includes BMW Motorrad outlets.

Globally, 2013 proved to be rather neat for the Group - overall sales volume went up by 6.4% as the automaker delivered 1,963,798 vehicles worldwide (2012 volume: 1,845,186 units). The Asia-Pacific region was the second largest market after Europe, chipping in with 575,616 units.