
Comparing two of the reputed car brands is surely a difficult task, and when the brands are German-based BMW and Audi, it gets all the more challenging.
BMW and Audi are German car brands who have made it big in the automobile industry around the world. They are well-known for manufacturing sporty and luxurious sedans, with the top-notch features available in cars. These car companies have been rivals for quite a while now in terms of attracting customers, producing the best cars, and even in the field of advertising. Since both car brands have their own set of standards and goodwill, most buyers are confused whether they should choose a BMW or an Audi car. In the following lines, we will discuss in general about BMW and Audi.
BMW and Audi
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW), which refers to Bavarian Motor Works in English, is a German car and motorcycle manufacturing company, formed in 1916. It owns brands such as the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and Mini.
On the other hand, Audi is also a German car manufacturer which is a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group. It is a proud owner of Automobili Lamborghini Holding S.p.A. Both companies are considered to cater to the needs of all types of customers.
The History
BMW’s formation was a result of restructuring an aircraft engine production company. In 1918, the company was asked to stop aircraft engine production, due to a treaty. However, when the restrictions of the treaty started to be taken back in 1923, the company got into manufacturing motorcycles, and later automobiles in 1928. This is when BMW came up with its first car, the BMW 3/15.
Audi’s founder, August Horch started a company ‘A. Horch & Cie.’ in 1899, from which he was forced to leave because of some conflicts with the management. Later, he founded another company ‘Horch Automobil-Werke GmbH’, from which he had to leave again in 1909. He started a third company ‘Zwickau’, but with the same ‘Horch’ brand, for which the second company sued him. August Horch was banned by the court to use his own name as a brand. He later got the idea to use “Audi” as the brand name. The verb – Audire in Latin means – to listen!
The Logo
BMW’s blue and white logo is believed to be related to a running aircraft propeller cutting through the blue sky. This logo was inspired by the Rapp Motorenwerke company logo, the aircraft manufacturing firm, from who’s restructuring, BMW was formed. The colors used in the logo are Bavaria’s national colors.
Audi logo has four interlinked rings, which represent the four companies that were with the Auto-Union Consortium in 1932. The companies were Audi, Dampf-Kraft-Wagen (DKW), Horch, and Wanderer.
The Slogan
BMW – The Ultimate Driving Machine
AUDI – Vorsprung durch Technik (literally means progress through technology).
&
Truth in Engineering
Technology
The most apparent difference notable in BMW and Audi cars is the car grill. BMW cars have a set of grills, whereas Audi cars just have a big one. The major difference between these two models are the chassis layout. Most of the latest Audi models use an all wheel drive, while a few run on the front wheel drive technology, However, most of the BMW launches work on the rear wheel drive system. Both brands have their own range of medium and high-end luxury cars. There are a few other minor differences between the two which are comparatively less noteworthy.
BMW will launch its five-seater M5 model with an 4.4L V8 engine in 2013, with a 7-speed automated manual transmission.
Audi’s 2013 launch, is a four-seater A7 car with a gas propulsion 3.0L V6 engine. With an estimated mileage of 18 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on highways, the A7 has an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Global Presence
The global presence of an automobile industry is determined by the location of its manufacturing units.
BMW’s global presence is immense, with the German car-maker having 25 manufacturing plants in 14 countries, including Germany, Italy, Great Britain, South Africa, China, USA, Austria, India, Indonesia, Egypt, Russia, Malaysia and Thailand.
Audi has seven manufacturing plants worldwide, which are in Germany, Slovakia, Hungary, China, Belgium and India.
Sales
BMW declared the first quarter sales of this year as 425,528 units (including Mini and Rolls Royce), which is 11.2 percent higher than last year. In the U.S. alone, the sales figures are 75,829 units. This an all-time new record for the first quarter.
Audi sales for the first quarter, as declared in the company’s sales reports are 386,097 cars worldwide. In the U.S. market alone, the total cars delivered are 29,470, an increase of 16.1 percent from the previous quarter.
The Costliest Ones
BMW leads the race with Nazca M12, priced at $650,000, with a V12 RWD engine.
The costliest car made by Audi, the Le Mans Concept, has a V10 AWD engine, priced at $2,940,000.
Top Speeds
BMW launched the M5 sports sedan, that has achieved a top speed of 190 mph, with the acceleration from 0 to 60 mph taking only 4.4 seconds! The car is expected to provide a mileage of 28.5 mpg.
Audi’s latest Spyder R8 GT model has a top speed of 196.97 mph, with the acceleration from 0 to 60 mph taking only 3.8 seconds. But, in classic Audi style, the number of units are limited to 333 cars only!
Ad War
Since advertising plays a very important role in business, both companies have taken it very seriously, which once resulted in a kind of cold war between these two automobile giants.
The billboard war is the latest addition to the advertising war that the two German giants have entered into!
♔ The Audi A4 billboard in Los Angeles, CA, was carrying the slogan,
“Your Move, BMW“
♚ Then, BMW followed the act with the ‘chessy’ slogan,
“Checkmate“
♔ If you thought it stopped here, well, it didn’t! The Audi R8 was launched with the billboard reading,
“Time to check your luxury badge. It may have expired.“
♚ BMW gave it back in Hong Kong with the 5-series campaign. The billboard reads,
“Who knew efficiency could be so beautiful.“
Now, What’s next Audi?
The Future
The future of the auto industry is ruled by hybrids and electric models. Both these auto rulers have a line of products lined up for this category.
☞ BMW i3: A fully electric car using carbon fiber reinforced plastic for the car top
☞ Audi Urban Concept: A single seater electric engine
☞ Audi A3 e-tron: A petrol-electric hybrid design
☞ BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe: Has space to carry one extra passenger in the jump seat
When it comes to BMW vs. Audi; reliability, safety, performance, and other important ratings are much the same. It cannot be concluded that either of these brands are better than the other, since the purchase totally depends on personal preferences and the car use of the buyer.