The influx of Chinese auto brands into Australia has now extended to premium brands, but BMW isn’t worried about them encroaching on its turf.
“Does a customer feel they’re in the premium space? Are they at the price point of a premium car? I’m not sure. I think the answer lies in all that,” said BMW Group Australia CEO Vikram Pawah when asked if he was concerned about the arrival of new premium brands from China.
“What we can see today is clearly our customers are not impacted by that at the moment. We can’t see any trend of that happening,” said Mr Pawah.
“I think you can see more in the mass segment. That’s where it looks like things are happening, which has always been the case as new players come in all the time.
“Always in the mass segment, that’s where the fight happens.
“You’ve got to be offering premium to be in the premium space. Premium is never about price points. Premium is about the content of the product, the feel of the product.
“Premium is an experience. It’s just not buying into a price point. That’s value for money. And don’t think value for money is ever premium.”
Geely-owned Zeekr was launched here in 2024 and its sales took off late in 2025 with the arrival of the 7X mid-size electric SUV, which despite the brand’s premium positioning is priced sharply against the likes of the Tesla Model Y and BYD Sealion 7.
BYD commenced deliveries early this year of vehicles from its premium Denza brand, GWM plans to launch its Wey brand this year as a sub-brand, while other Chinese players such as Xpeng are reaching further into the premium space.
Changan’s Avatr marque and FAW’s Hongqi division are also set to launch in Australia, with the latter being the oldest passenger-car brand in China and having a rich history of building official state cars.
Mr Pawah noted this is far from the first time German luxury brands like BMW have faced competition from another country’s automotive industry.
“Is it the first time that’s happened? I don’t think this is the first time we’re seeing any new competition or new set of geographical competition coming into play. It’s all evolved,” he said.
First came the Japanese, with Honda establishing Acura in 1986. In 1989, Toyota launched Lexus and Nissan launched Infiniti. Lexus arrived in Australia in 1990, though Infiniti took until 2012 to launch here as a proper standalone brand.
More recently, BMW has faced competition from Korea in the shape of the Hyundai Motor Group’s Genesis brand, announced in 2015 and launched here in 2019.
Lexus has narrowed the gap between itself and BMW in Australia, but even in its best year – 2023 – more than 10,000 sales separated the two.
Genesis sits further back, while Infiniti pulled out of the Australian market in 2020.
BMW also currently leads in the US market, the brand’s second largest, but here Lexus has previously led in premium sales for several consecutive years.
In China, BMW’s largest market, the Bavarian marque lost the title of best-selling premium auto brand in 2025, albeit not to one of the growing ranks of premium Chinese brands but rather to another German: Audi.
“It’s all about joy and it’s all about trust, and that’s what our pillars are that we play on. And that’s what a premium offering is all about,” said Mr Pawah.
“It’s not just that you’re buying a car and forgetting about it after two years. You’re there until the end of the life cycle or whenever you want to keep the car until.
“We have a lot of club members in BMW. 15,000 club members. That’s trust. So should I be worried about [Chinese brands]? I’m not sure…”
BMW has been Australia’s best-selling premium brand for the past three years, after snatching the crown from Mercedes-Benz, and says it intends to remain on top.
“BMW is never an ‘either or’ company – we’re an ‘and’ company. We want [sales] leadership and to focus on profit at the same time, so we balance it accordingly,” he said.
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