In a candid interview with IOL at SA Auto Week 2026, BMW Group South Africa Chairman and CEO Peter van Binsbergen has delivered both a record report card and a stark warning for South Africa's auto industry: neutrality is a superpower, but the local manufacturing base is under threat.
Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, Van Binsbergen, a South African mechanical engineer who has spent 32 years with the German brand, reflected on leadership, consumer pressure, and why the next 12 months will determine the future of the industry.
Van Binsbergen's road to the top is unusual. He joined BMW South Africa as a graduate and never worked a day as an engineer.
"I started in aftersales, moved to marketing, then sales. Then I went to headquarters in Germany, then Japan as head of marketing, back to Germany, to China as head of sales and marketing in our joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive, back to Germany to run the home market, then aftersales for the world, and then back to South Africa," he said.
His philosophy: "If a job doesn't make you feel uncomfortable when you start it, then don't do it, because you're not going to grow."
That breadth, he argues, is BMW's strength, allowing associates to leave their comfort zones, and blessed with a family willing to change countries again. But he was clear on one non-negotiable for anyone wanting to lead in the auto industry: "At some stage in your career, you have to have been involved in sales. Otherwise, you'll never make it to the top."
Leadership in a pressure economy
On leading thousands of employees in a shrinking market, Van Binsbergen said the job is not to know more than your people, but to make them achieve more than they think possible.
"My job is to help people achieve more than they believe they can achieve. I come to work full of ideas and questions, can we not try this? Can we not go beyond what you told me you can do?"
He described himself as not too corporate, quick to think on his feet, and get things done. "I am also saying let's try new innovative things, and let's be quick to get to the market," he says.
That approach has been tested by South Africa's cost-of-living crisis. Van Binsbergen argued that for car owners, fuel price increases were "much, much worse than interest rates" in terms of monthly impact.
BMW's response has been to build an ecosystem between Sales, Aftersales and Financial Services to de-risk ownership. Two examples he cited:
The first is Prime minus 3 on BMW's used cars, to cushion cash-strapped customers. Consumers can select a lease-like product where customers drive for three years and can return the keys with nothing owed, because BMW guarantees the future value.
Underpinning it is what he calls "peace of mind" — Motorplan (5 years/100,000km), roadside assistance for potholes, and connected cars that proactively call the customer when a battery is running flat or tyre pressure is dropping.
"Our slogan is 'Relax, we care.' We are watching over you," he said.
The numbers: record production, 96% exported
Van Binsbergen gave rare detail on Rosslyn's performance. The plant can produce 75,000 to 80,000 cars a year, up to 85,000 with Saturday shifts, running three shifts five days a week.
Some 96% of that volume is exported to 42 countries. Only about 4% stays in South Africa. Overall, BMW sells 13,000 to 14,000 units locally per year and is growing year-on-year, leading the premium segment.
Last year, Rosslyn achieved its highest production ever: 79,200 cars. It was also, in rand terms, the highest local content ever for BMW, meaning suppliers had the most volume and created the most jobs.
And in a striking anecdote about geopolitics, he revealed how South Africa's non-aligned status became a business advantage.
"Trump alienated Canada with tariffs. Canada came to us and said, can we get X3s from South Africa instead? It was cheaper to buy from us than from the US, even though we are far away. That's how we hit the record," he said.
"South Africa needs to be friends with everybody. We are not aligned, and that's very good. We must stay like that."
The most pointed part of the interview was on Chinese brands.
Van Binsbergen clarified that BMW's joint venture in China serves China only and BMW does not import cars from China to South Africa. The X3 is produced in China for China, just as it is produced in Rosslyn for the world.
But he acknowledged the seismic shift: Chinese brands have gone from 0% to 25% of the South African market in two years.
"They are definitely displacing local production. I wouldn't say they're affecting us directly, because we are growing more than the total new car market. But they're definitely hurting other brands. That's not good for South Africa."
"If you're not selling a locally produced car because an imported car has taken its place, you've lost jobs in the long term. Suppliers are closing down. NAACAM will tell you, NUMSA is up in arms because jobs are being lost, some competitors have cut shifts."
He said BMW is in direct talks with Minister Parks Tau, the dtic, ITAC and Treasury to "sharpen the tools" of the Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP).
"APDP was there to stimulate and protect local production. Why is it no longer protecting? How can these guys import cars and undercut a locally produced car?"
His argument is two-fold: first, protect the invested footprint so jobs stay; second, make the business case attractive enough for new entrants to manufacture locally.
"Why are the likes of GWM not coming to South Africa, opening a factory, creating jobs, bringing suppliers? Chery has been the first one. I challenged Tony, I want you to localise, be one of us. Bring suppliers to Rosslyn, that we can all benefit. That gives economies of scale, deepens localisation, and has a very positive effect on the economy."
The invisible R4 billion investment
On investment, Van Binsbergen pointed to the new X3 hybrid; every X3 hybrid sold in the world is made in Rosslyn, as core business. But he highlighted two community investments often missed.
One is education where they work with primary, middle and technical schools around Rosslyn, colleges, and a STEM programme with UNICEF bringing computer labs, robotics and coding into schools.
"In underprivileged communities, they don't grow up taking the lawnmower apart. We try to close that gap," he said.
The other is BMW's IT Hub in Midrand which is the biggest IT Hub in the world for BMW.
"Every year, about R4 billion flows into South Africa in the form of salaries. R4 billion that pays school fees, houses, clothes and looks after greater families. It could be anywhere in the world, in India, but it is here. That is often forgotten because it doesn't come with a big presidential investment pledge," he explained.
Van Binsbergen was blunt about SA Auto Week's purpose: "This is definitely business-to-government and business-to-media, not business-to-customer. We're here to talk to government and media and get things to change."
He said this is the first SA Auto Week where he feels the right audience is in the room, with government present in every panel.
"Government is also saying things that show all our work for the last years together is paying off. We are listening to each other. Now things have the opportunity to actually turn talk into action. Otherwise, it's just a waste of time."
His metric for success: "In the next 12 months, we see decisions being made, things improving for the local industry. And the real test for me will be when GWM announces we are coming to South Africa and building a plant."
Ayanda Mdluli is the Editor: Thought and Opinion at IOL
The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of IOL