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For more than 20 years, the Schnitzer racing team and AC Schnitzer have repeatedly reaffirmed their leading position in both the Motorsport and BMW tuning arena. Their expertise in automotive engineering has consistantly yielded technical advantages from racing, which has translated into clear benefits on the road. With AC Schnitzer, motorsport technology and lifestyle is made available to enthusiastic BMW drivers for everyday enjoyment, surpassing standards and taking them beyond convention.
Autovox has recently partnered with AC Schnitzer to continue bringing the excitement of BMW tuning to Singapore, and to provide BMW drivers with a vast array of products from its tuning range.
Rainer Vogel, CEO and Enrico Fois, Senior Export Manager of AC Schnitzer, were in town on Thursday and Friday to pay their new partners a visit. The offer of an exclusive interview was offered to BMW.SG and on Thursday afternoon, I (Ryan) sat down for a very informative interview/chat session with both Rainer and Enrico.
(L-R - Enrico Fois, Ryan Chua and Rainer Vogel)
First, Rainer gave a very thorough presentation on the history and heritage of AC Schnitzer before moving on to the short Q&A session due to time constraints.
Ryan: What is AC Schnitzer’s view on BMW’s new Performance Line? Do you view it as competition?
Rainer: It is still an honour for us to be involved in the BMW tuning arena because there is a difference between a standard BMW and a tuned BMW. Furthermore for now, there are only 120 products in the Performance Line as compared to our 2,000 products; for instance, there is only one wheel design in the Performance Line. Performance Line is only for the 1 and 3-series, and there is nothing yet for the M-series. Of course the Performance Line focuses more on the interior styling and that will be a push factor, but we don’t fear competition.
Ryan: Are there any plans for AC Schnitzer demo cars in Singapore?
Rainer: We have a policy not to sell complete cars but rather the parts so that local partners can build the demo cars for themselves. It is simply not cost-efficient for our local partners to ship the entire demo car from Germany to their country.
Ryan: What are AC Schnitzer’s directions on green technology for the automotive industry?
Rainer: Our concept GP3.10 car is the world’s fastest liquid-fuelled car, so we are definitely committed to this field of green technology. However it is still too early to give a detailed answer to your question as we are still researching.
Ryan: Any thoughts on competitors, especially the Japanese tuners for exhaust systems?
Rainer: Well, we have to keep abreast of market developments, but I’m not too worried because brand positioning is not gained overnight, and AC Schnitzer has a long and rich history behind us.
Ryan: How about other European competitors e.g. Hartge, Hamann?
Rainer: To be honest, we’re not concerned about that because there is no clear positioning on the brands you named. We’re confident in our brand and our positioning in the BMW tuning arena.
Ryan: Thank you, Rainer and Enrico, for your time.
Rainer: You’re most welcome; it was our pleasure.
Much thanks to the Autovox team to making this interview possible!
AC Schnitzer Official Website
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