Video: BMW showcases new EV design

The BMW Group is showcasing its “Vision Neue Klasse” EV design at IAA Mobility Munich (aka the International Motor Show Germany), September 5-10.

Starting in 2025, the Neue Klasse platform will feature in at least six EVs (including a hydrogen option), with BMW’s “Vision Vehicle” unveiled to the public at the Munich show.

The new design has been pared down to the essentials, says BMW AG management board chairman Oliver Zipse, adding the next generation BMW iDrive has a unique digital user experience that merges real and virtual worlds, increased use of secondary raw materials, resource-efficient production and a fully electric drive train with sixth-generation BMW eDrive technology reducing the carbon footprint across the vehicle lifecycle.

BMW AG management board member responsible for development Frank Weber says Neue Klasse EVs will have 30% more range, 30% faster charging and 25% more efficiency.

Powerful wheel arches, the retracted greenhouse and steeply forward-slanting “shark nose” front-end are characteristic BMW features, while 21-inch aerodynamic wheels pay tribute to the classic cross-spoke design inspired by motorsports.

The nearly monolithic vehicle body, with strong indentations at the front and rear, as well as large window areas, create a new aesthetic and the luminous exterior paintwork in “Joyous bright” has a subtle yellow hue. Contrast is provided by black side skirts and bumpers.

A higher percentage of secondary raw materials and significantly reduced material variety are used, and an improved dismantling concept will help optimise recycling, says BMW.

Analogue operating controls have been reduced to a minimum in the BMW Vision Neue Klasse. Human-car interaction takes place through the BMW Panoramic Vision, the central display and multifunction buttons on the steering wheel.

BMW Panoramic Vision will be available for the first time in the Neue Klasse where information is projected across the entire windscreen width – complementing the enhanced BMW head-up display.

The driver and front passenger will be able to interact with information displayed on BMW Panoramic Vision, and drivers can move content shown on the central display to the BMW Panoramic Vision with a simple gesture.

In My Mode ‘Sport’, specific displays are set against a yellow background to support dynamic driving.

A smartphone charging cradle and glassy selector lever space are on the centre console, the front seats attached to the floor by a single bracket – freeing up additional legroom in the rear compartment.

Manufactured at the new plant in Debrecen without fossil fuels and with much wider use of raw and secondary materials produced with reduced CO2, the Neue Klasse will also provide significant impetus for resource-efficient individual mobility.

Major advances in the new BMW eDrive technology include highly efficient electric motors, and round battery cells with more than 20% higher energy density than prismatic cells used previously.