Pieter de Waal Named New VP, BMW Motorrad USA

March 2008

Introduction to Pieter de Waal, Vice President, BMW Motorrad USA by Kari Prager

We went to the recent BMW Dealer Meeting in San Diego and were privileged to meet the new world-wide head of the BMW Motorcycle Group, Hendrik von Kuehnheim. Herr von Kuehnheim is an avid motorcyclist since his youth, and is the son of Eberhard von Kuehnheim, who ran the entire BMW corporation very successfully for 25 years, the longest tenure of any automotive corporate head anywhere in the world. The mood of the meeting was the most upbeat of any dealer meeting I have attended in many years. BMW has some incredible product in the pipeline, and is examining all aspects of the motorcycle market in the USA to build bikes that meet our needs, for example bike variants with low seats, bikes with true superbike performance, and lighter, more agile bikes. All in all, it is a very exciting time to be a BMW dealer, especially for a technology enthusiast like me.

I would like to add a personal note to the announcement of Pieter de Waal's appointment to this highly critical position in BMW Motorrad. Pieter has been a personal friend for ten years, he is an enthusiastic motorcyclist, and a man of broad interests, a true humanist. He is acutely aware of the importance of the American market, and he is interested in developing products that fit the needs of the American riders. We are also fortunate that he remains on the three-man board that is responsible for developing new product, so he will have close ties to Germany and to the future offerings of BMW.

If I could have had the freedom and opportunity to pick anyone from the BMW hierarchy to lead BMW in this country, I would have chosen Pieter. We will all work very hard to make his tenure a success, and offer the very best in innovative technology, performance and user friendliness.

Kari Prager

BMW Group Press Release - Pieter de Waal Named New VP, BMW Motorrad USA

Woodcliff Lake, NJ - February 25, 2008 - BMW Group announced today, that Pieter de Waal will be taking over the role of Vice President, BMW Motorrad USA as of April 1st. He replaces Arturo Pineiro, who took the position of President of BMW, Central and South America.

Pieter de Waal, who grew up in South Africa, has been with BMW Group since 1994. In his current position, he heads worldwide Sales and Marketing for BMW Motorrad based in Munich. Prior to that he worked for BMW Group in Great Britain and South Africa as General Manager of BMW Motorrad and Technical Director of BMW Motorsport. Before he joined BMW Group, Pieter worked for numerous other companies including Nissan and Daimler-Benz.

Pieter de Waal is a qualified engineer with more than 20 years of experience. He holds a diploma in Civil Engineering from the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.

BMW of North America took on the responsibility for BMW motorcycle sales and distribution in October 1980, succeeding the previous private importer. Since then, sales have grown steadily and BMW offers a full range of models in the US, ranging from the signature Boxer-engined twin cylinder models to new four-cylinder, two-cylinder and single-cylinder models. In 2007, deliveries of BMW motorcycles in the US totaled 12,093. BMW is a leading provider of motorcycles to police departments in the US.