By Leftlane Staff
Friday, Jul 21st, 2006 @ 10:24 am

Recently, BMW ’s North America vice president for operations sat down for an interview with Automotive News to talk about the company’s future product plans. With the next-generation X5 right around the corner, he said the market for luxury SUVs is unlikely to decline, because people who can afford such vehicles “certainly can afford higher fuel prices.” He did note, however, that BMW has no plans for an even larger SUV. BMW won’t “overdo it,” he said. Regarding rumors of a possible replacement to the Z8 roadster, Mosher said BMW doesn’t “need” to build such a car, but would like to. He admitted Mercedes has always done well with its SL-Class roadster. When asked why BMW is planning a competitor to the slow-selling Mercedes R-Class, Mosher said he thinks popularity of such vehicles will increase in the future. He said this class of vehicle is being developed to meet the needs of the future. He likened the new segment to the debut of the minivan — “years ago there was no such thing,” he explained.

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