I totally get what he is talking about Tier 1 / Tier 2, and Tier 3 customers. But frankly, I cannot see how he distinguishes between brands. Doesn't matter. Tier 3 customers could buy a BMW just as easy as an Audi or a Land Rover or a Mercedes. Regardless of brand, there are always going to be those that go into owning a European luxury car without being educated on the risks.
I don't buy his line that BMW drivers are more willing to drop money into their car than a Mercedes driver. Or a Jag driver. Or an Audi.
Any car guy recognizes all the BMWs that can be seen parked in a driveway, or alongside a house, or in the street. The ones that haven't moved in months, sometimes years. These are the cars that someone was super excited about buying because they were going to drive a BMW for the price of an Accord. Then they find out that their BMW is one with a bad engine or bad electronics. They don't have any repair skills of their own. And they can't begin to afford to to pay someone else to fix it. So it sits in the driveway while they continue to make payments on it.
The local news recently ran a short human interest story about a young 20 something kid from the town I live in, who bought a high mileage Audi A4. No PPI. The car he had dreamed about for years. Within two weeks the timing belt failed. He blamed the dealership because the salesman told him the car was in great shape. Now he has a $5k - $6k bill to get a new engine.
This kid went in to his Audi purchase unprepared. If he had done his research he would have known that timely replacement of the timing belt is critical. This kid had no business buying an Audi. He didn't do his homework.