Alpina officially brought under the BMW Group umbrella

BMW Group is expanding, with the announcement it has acquired the Alpina brand.

Alpina is essentially an aftermarket tuner with manufacturer status, creating premium performance cars based on BMW models, with the two companies enjoying a close relationship for many decades.

While the deal is still waiting for approval by antitrust authorities, the statement outlines how BMW Group has taken over the rights to the Alpina brand, and “no shares in the company will be acquired”.

Like BMW, Alpina is actually a family-owned business. The deal ensures the Bovensiepen family will continue to own the company itself, but with BMW Group leading and controlling its trademark rights.

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It’s expected Alpina vehicles will continue to be developed and manufactured as normal up until 2025, before moving in-house to BMW.

Alpina models are often referred to as ‘the thinking-person’s BMW M car’, offering high performance with a more comfort-oriented ride and luxury interior, making them ideal for buyers who are happy to sacrifice some on-track capability for on-road enjoyment – as well as being rarer and more exclusive than BMW M models.