In Russia, luxury BMW SUVs assembled without the concern’s permission continue to be sold. The first such cars, assembled at the Kaliningrad Avtotor plant, appeared in March 2025, Carscoops reports.
In 2025, 145 of these “pirate” cars were sold. Their distinctive feature is that they are registered as 2025 cars, but retain the design of the 2022 models, while BMW updated the appearance of the X-Series in 2022-2024, reports Carscoops.
BMW Group spokeswoman Caroline Bachmann confirmed in a written statement that Avtotor began producing limited quantities of BMWs in 2025, assembling them from old, partially obsolete kits left over from 2022. She added that unauthorized assembly continues “on an irregular basis” to this day. To reduce risks for buyers, the company has informed government agencies, dealers and potential customers about the situation with these vehicles.
Three models of unauthorized BMW X5, X6 and X7 are estimated at 11.9-12.9 million rubles for basic versions. This is millions of rubles cheaper than analogues imported into the country through “gray” imports.
However, British expert Christopher Ludwig warns that BMW’s lack of engineering control will inevitably lead to potential quality problems. The key difficulty lies in the BMW software, which is either not updated or reprogrammed.
Russian sellers, however, present this as an advantage, claiming that cars cannot be blocked remotely through BMW servers.
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