BMW to Build Driving Center in Korea

BMW AG has broken ground on its first driving center in Asia, a 70 billion-won (€48 million) facility in Incheon, South Korea, that is scheduled to open by July 2014.

The facility will enable owners and potential customers to drive BMW and Mini vehicle on a 2.6-kilometer track consisting of six courses. The company expects to attract about 200,000 visitors per year to the center, which also will have a driving academy, exhibit of BMW models, cafe and restaurant.

Hendrik von Kuenheim, head of BMW Group's Asia Pacific unit, tells reporters the facility is geared to luring younger Koreans who have high expectations for luxury goods and services.

The country is one of BMW's fastest-growing markets after China. The company expects its Korean sales to grow 14% this year to 39,000.