BMW is celebrating a production milestone in Brazil, where its Araquari plant has assembled 125,000 vehicles since opening in 2014. Located in the southern state of Santa Catarina, the factory has produced a dozen models over the past 12 years. It continues to play an important role in the company’s South American operations.
The facility currently builds three models: the X1, 3 Series, and the plug-in hybrid version of the previous-generation X5. Local production has become increasingly important to BMW’s business in Brazil, with vehicles assembled at Araquari accounting for 60.5% of the brand’s sales in the country so far this year. Until recently, the X4 was also made there, but BMW discontinued the coupe-styled SUV, with the Debrecen-built iX4 indirectly taking its place in the lineup.
Inaugurated on September 30, 2014, the Araquari plant covers 1.5 million square meters, including 112,893 square meters of buildings. Its operations include body welding, painting, assembly, and logistics, with a flexible production line designed to adapt to changing market demands.
Brazil Also Contributes To BMW’s Global Engineering Efforts
Araquari does more than build cars. Together with BMW’s São Paulo office, the plant hosts one of the automaker’s five global engineering development centers, and the only one in Latin America.
The Brazilian team contributes to vehicle development, testing, and validation, working on projects with both local and global applications. The other engineering centers are located in the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea, with Germany coordinating activities across the international network.
Okay, 125,000 vehicles in 12 years might seem modest compared with BMW’s high-volume plants in Germany or the U.S., but Araquari serves a different purpose. It gives the automaker a local manufacturing foothold in South America while contributing engineering expertise to projects beyond Brazil’s borders.
The Araquari plant assembled 11,304 vehicles in 2025, down 1.5% from the previous year. It’s one of BMW’s smallest factories by annual output, but that doesn’t make it any less important to the company’s global production network.
What’s Next For BMW In Brazil?
For now, BMW has not announced any additional models for local production. However, BMW has already revealed the next generations of both the 3 Series and X5, raising the question of whether either the G50 or the G65 will eventually make its way to the Araquari assembly line. The X1 will undergo a major mid-cycle facelift next year, so the Brazilian site has interesting prospects.
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
