For over half a century, this claim has been synonymous with the BMW driving experience. But how did the iconic slogan come about? And why is it more relevant today than ever? The answers are revealed in this brief journey through BMW’s history.
Three words with harmonious alliteration: a powerful brand slogan can be so simple. Since 1965 respectively 1972, the German claim “Freude am Fahren” (sheer driving pleasure) has been used for advertisements and commercials, in image campaigns and on social media. “The slogan delivers a positive emotion. With pleasure being at the core of BMW’s brand, it does exactly what a claim should,” says Joachim Blickhäuser, Head of Corporate and Brand Identity at the BMW Group.
At the same time that “Freude am Fahren” became the company slogan in 1972, its translation for export markets was also standardized. Before this, many freely translated variations of the car slogan had been used. In English-speaking countries, for example, it had been translated as “BMW puts pleasure back into motoring,” and “For the joy of motoring” or sometimes “For sheer driving pleasure.” “La joie de conduire” was used in French, and in Spanish it was “Para el puro placer de manejar.” Afterwards, a more literal translation was adopted in both French (“Le plaisir de conduire”) and Spanish (“El placer de conducir”), while in English the slogan was a little more loosely translated as “Sheer Driving Pleasure.” The one exception was the U.S., and now most recently the U.K., where BMW advertises its cars as “The Ultimate Driving Machine.”
""Sheer Driving Pleasure" describes the distinctive brand essence of BMW." - Joachim Blickhauser, Head of Corporate & Brand Identity at the BMW Group
The BMW slogan “Sheer Driving Pleasure” has evolved over the years from various brand claims in German. The term “pleasure” first appeared in the 1930s in BMW ads. It was later expanded to “Sheer Driving Pleasure.” The three-word claim was officially adopted in 1972, and, with a few exceptions, is used around the world to advertise BMW vehicles.
