BMW Still The Ultimate Driving Machine, Not That It Ever Wasn't

BMW of North America has revived – make that reinforced – its famous tagline, “The Ultimate Driving Machine.”

A recent TV ad says, “We don’t make sports cars. We don’t make SUVs. We don’t make hybrids. We don’t make luxury sedans. We only make one thing. The Ultimate Driving Machine.”

That’s stating the obvious. The Ultimate Driving Machine has been BMW’s unforgettable identity since the 1970s.

Yet the tagline is a touchy subject inside BMW. BMW came up with what eventually became a worldwide ad campaign called “Joy,” in time for its sponsorship of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada.  The idea was to reinforce the user benefit of owning The Ultimate Driving Machine.

BMW never entirely abandoned “Ultimate Driving Machine,” but the “Joy” campaign started a public uproar that BMW was turning its back on one of the best taglines ever.

Dan Creed has been vice president, marketing for BMW of North America LLC, since October 2010. He’s spent much of that time stoutly maintaining that BMW never, ever dropped the old tagline. The following are edited excerpts from an interview earlier this spring:

What’s up with “Ultimate Driving Machine?”

It’s The Ultimate Driving Machine whether it’s the 3, the 5 or the 7, and as we look at other segments, like smaller cars, like front-wheel drive, it will be there, too. We have great confidence in the product.

Is there a danger that more fuel-efficient cars aren’t seen as high-performance?

When you’re a premium brand, it all comes down to authenticity and credibility. Because with a smaller car you run the risk that “efficient” is at the expense of “dynamic.” But I think we have a lot of credibility for doing that.

So Ultimate Driving Machine is back?

We never got rid of Ultimate Driving Machine. We had a campaign called the “Joy” campaign, but Ultimate Driving Machine, we never ever, never ever, moved away from it. The idea of the Joy campaign was that if there was one group that was not always our strength, but that we could do better with, it was women. “Joy” would warm the brand up and make it approachable. And it did that. The brand is still seen as dynamic, it’s still The Ultimate Driving Machine, but “Joy” is still at the center of the experience.

The Ultimate Driving Machine, for us, I think, is something that’s got legs of its own – but yes, we are back.