We talked about Alpina’s future plans just the other day when we learned the German automaker will most likely introduce a version of the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe early next year. Looking at the company’s portfolio, it consists entirely of traditional combustion-powered models and there seems to be a very good reason for that. According to Alpina’s CEO, there’s simply no demand for an electric vehicle from Buchloe.
Andreas Bovensiepen told BimmerToday a recent survey among Alpina customers showed they currently have no need for a hybrid or an electric vehicle. The main reason for that is that some of those clients clock 30,000 to 50,000 kilometres (approx. 18,600 to 31,068 miles) per year on the German Autobahn and they want to do so as fast as possible.
Gallery: 2022 BMW Alpina B8 Gran Coupe
“Our customers currently feel no demand for battery-electric models,” Bovensiepen told the publication during a test drive at Salzburgring. ”This is also due to the high mileage: Alpina customers want to drive fast and accelerate strongly, especially in Germany - then, of course, the range is still an issue.”
Some of Alpinas latest products:
For the time being, it seems that Alpina will remain focused on combustion-powered models simply because this is what its customer base wants. Of course, that doesn’t mean the folks from Buchloe aren’t monitoring the market but the firm just doesn’t have enough resources to fill niche segments. And in this case, the EV sector is considered a niche segment.
“Many things are conceivable. But as I said: our resources are limited. First of all, we want to build what our regular customers want. We observe the market and deal with the new technologies, but it is not to be expected that an Alpina will come as a BEV vehicle in the short term.”
Source: BimmerToday