BMW Brilliance Automotive’s Dadong plant in Shenyang, China, has crossed a major production milestone. On August 21, the factory passed 3.5 million vehicles built since opening in 2003. The milestone coincided with another figure: more than 2 million units of the BMW 5 Series have now been produced locally. The 5 Series remains one of BMW’s strongest models in China, where it leads the premium executive sedan segment. The landmark car was a 5 Series Shadow Edition, nicknamed the “Black Warrior.”
Plant Dadong was BMW’s first manufacturing site in China and has grown steadily over the past two decades. Today it produces the BMW 5 Series long-wheelbase, X3 and X5 long-wheelbase for the Chinese market. It is also the only factory worldwide that builds the fully electric BMW iX3 for global export. The plant has been upgraded in 2022 with extensive digital and automated systems. A platform called AI Quality Next uses cameras and AI analysis at more than 30 production stations to monitor assembly in real time and flag possible defects.
Paint finishing is a particular focus. Each 5 Series is scanned with over 100,000 images to check light and shadow on the body surface before delivery. The system continues analyzing data outside of working hours to improve accuracy.
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The achievement comes as BMW faces a tougher environment in China. In 2024, BMW Brilliance sales dropped 15 percent to 603,800 vehicles, while exports fell by more than a third. Rising competition from domestic EV makers and weaker demand for combustion models are key factors. BMW recently appointed Birgit Böhm-Wannenwetsch as CEO of BMW Brilliance on August 1. Together with Plant Tiexi, the Shenyang production hub is on track to hit a combined output of 5 million vehicles later this year.
Both plants are part of BMW’s iFACTORY plan, which emphasizes lean, green, and digitalized production. Dadong is now capable of producing combustion, hybrid, and fully electric vehicles on the same line, giving the company flexibility as China’s market shifts.