BMW Group announced on June 23, 1992, that it would build its first full manufacturing facility outside of Germany in South Carolina.  At that time, the company pledged to invest $600 million, to employ 2,000 associates by the year 2000, and attract at least nine suppliers to the state. It was the fastest factory start-up in automotive history—a record 23 months from site groundbreaking to first car produced.

Now over three decades later, the BMW Group has invested nearly 12.4 billion, and the plant has gone through six major expansions.  The seventh major expansion was announced on October 19, 2022- a $1.7 billion investment to prepare the plant for the production of electric vehicles and to build a high-voltage battery assembly plant in Woodruff, SC. There are more than 11,000 jobs onsite with over 40 direct Tier 1 suppliers located in South Carolina and more than 300 suppliers in the United States.

Since the start of production in 1994 the plant has produced more than 6 million vehicles. Currently, BMW Manufacturing produces more than 1,500 vehicles each day and exports 70 percent of its production. The factory is the global producer of the BMW X3, X3 M, X5, X5 M and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles; the BMW X4, X4 M, X6 and X6 M Sports Activity Coupes; and the all-new BMW XM.