BMW i - IN DEVELOPMENT SINCE 1972.
The Story of Electrification.
Munich, 1972; the Olympic Games are in full swing. One of the host nation’s leading car manufacturers has introduced two electrically powered test vehicles. These adapted BMW 1602 models transported committee members and carried cameras in long-distance events.
This is BMW's humble first step into the world of electric driving. A first step that took us from lead batteries weighing 350kg and a range of just 37 miles to – through our own ambition and innovation – the fantastically efficient models we have today.
And so, a long and ambitious journey began. Development projects started with the aim of bringing an improved and, above all, more efficient electric car to our roads.
A journey which, over 40 years later in 2013, led to the BMW i3 – a car that set new standards for electric driving. The combination of BMW innovation, performance and style in a fully electric car that was genuinely practical, affordable and fun to drive.
Today’s electric car market is becoming increasingly occupied by new entrants, as brands across the world try and keep up with changing customer demands and needs.
Let's go back eight years to see when BMW first entered the arena:
In 2013, the BMW i3 was launched. A trailblazer for sustainable mobility that changed the game in the electric car market for good.
Now a global icon, this is a car that not only delivered an impressive all-electric driving range, but also combined with BMW’s trademark style, technology and performance.
Finally, environmentally conscious and eco-friendly customers had a car that not only met their needs, but also one they could fall in love with.
And the BMW i3 didn’t stop there. Now in 2021, it remains a class-leading electric car, as each evolution incorporates the latest technology.
Magnificent. Beautiful. Powerful. Fast.
BMW's first ever sports car with an electrified drivetrain.
A trailblazer of futuristic design and dynamic yet sustainable driving pleasure. The BMW i8 has been an exciting chapter in BMW’s electrification story.
It was our first plug-in hybrid, laying the foundation of what is now a large family of vehicles and for all our fantastic success with the BMW plug-in hybrid range up to this point.
And it sold too. Achieving the highest number of sales in its segment.
We owe it a lot. Not just for its halo effect on the success of the equally innovative BMW i3, but for what it means to BMW.
It represents our position at the cutting edge of electric innovation. The frontrunner in the future of electric driving.
A future that contains our next great electric car, launched in 2021.
DID YOU KNOW?
Electric car pioneers regularly travel longer distances in their BMW i3 and have completed more than 200,000 emission-free kilometres.