BMW South Carolina Plant Remains Top U.S. Auto Exporter

For the fourth straight year, BMW AG’s Spartanburg, S.C., manufacturing plant was the leading U.S. vehicle exporter by value with shipments totaling $8.8 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Last year the Spartanburg facility exported more than 270,300 vehicles, accounting for nearly three-quarters of the plant’s total output of 371,300 vehicles. This is down slightly from 2016, when the plant shipped 287,700 vehicles with a combined value of $9.5 billion.

The Spartanburg plant produces the X3, X4, X5 and X6 crossover/SUVs. The all-new flagship X7 will be added this summer, which should further increase exports. The plant has capacity to build as many as 450,000 vehicles per year. The South Carolina-produced vehicles were shipped to more than 140 countries worldwide.

BMW has exported about 2.5 million vehicles from the U.S. since opening the Spartanburg plant in 1994.

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