Why BMW's conveyor belt started working in Kaliningrad

The Avtotor plant in Kaliningrad has begun assembling two BMW models at once. The situation is strange, to put it mildly. No one has lifted the sanctions, and the company is not planning to return to the Russian market yet.


But there is some progress. Western automakers have begun to think about how to regain lost ground. BMW, by the way, is in a more advantageous position than other German companies. Mercedes-Benz, for example, very loudly "slammed the door" in 2022 and even cut off Russian dealers from access to diagnostic equipment.

Volkswagen Group also rushed to close production and forgot about warranty obligations to customers.

But BMW, although they limited their activity on the Russian market, did not “burn bridges”. The Bavarians did not sell their production facilities in Kaliningrad; an official representative office is operating. Since 2023, BMW Rusland Trading LLC has not been selling cars, but “warehousing and storage”. That is, warranty service continues in official dealerships. The supply of original spare parts has been established in full.

Is the ice breaking?

On March 12, news appeared that the Avtotor company had launched a conveyor in Kaliningrad. We may be talking about three-liter diesel models of the X5 and X6 with all-wheel drive. There was no official confirmation from the manufacturer, but several sources immediately reported that the plant would assemble "stale" car kits from 2022.


According to estimates, there are enough spare parts for 117 pre-restyling crossovers. The quality of the new cars is beyond doubt, since the plant uses original BMW spare parts. And it does not matter whether they were stored in a warehouse or were brought in via parallel import.

Experts believe that the price of "domestic" BMWs will start from 13 million rubles. This is about 15% cheaper than cars imported from Europe. By the way, in 2024, Russian customers received more than 100 new cars BMW from the Hanover plant despite the embargo.


Most likely, the PTS for Kaliningrad crossovers will be issued by the manufacturer, not BMW. Whether there will be a guarantee from Avtotor and how these cars will be serviced by dealers is an open question.

This is not the first case of German cars being assembled in Russia after the sanctions came into effect. Last year, up to 40 GLS crossovers were assembled at the former Mercedes plant in Esipovo near Moscow and went on sale.

BMW's reaction

The Russian representative office of BMW hastened to issue a statement that the assembly of vehicle kits is carried out without any coordination or agreement with the company. BMW Group does not bear any responsibility for the assembled cars.

The representative office warns that Avtotor could have completed the car kits with third-party components of dubious quality. Moreover, BMW emphasized that licensed software cannot be supplied to the cars. The assembled cars will not be listed in the company's database.


It is hard to believe that Avtotor decided to assemble the cars without preliminary agreements with BMW. In fact, the German company has nothing to lose from producing new cars in Kaliningrad. According to the documents, the new X5 and X6 will have no relation to BMW. And who did the official representative warn about the consequences?

But the precedent is interesting. And it is possible that gradually European brands will start to return to Russia. Although after three years of "expansion" of Chinese automakers it will be very difficult to do so.