New BMW i3 unveiled with 469hp, 550-mile range
The 3 Series has come a very long way in 50 years - get ready for the most drastic development yet
Though practically every new car from every manufacturer feels more important than ever right now, there is an additional significance attached to the very first electric BMW 3 Series. The core model that’s been around for 50 years, an icon of Germanic superiority, is the compact executive saloon that all others still aspire to - and the gateway model for many a BMW obsession around the world. And now it’s electric. Not exclusively electric - a regular 3 Series will follow after the i3 - but the hype and the anticipation will all be about the battery-powered car.
This is, after all, just the second car in the Neue Klasse range of machines after the iX3, as BMW further evolves its EV tech to go further, charge faster and weigh less. It features the new interior concept as well. This is the car that BMW will want customers to have rather than the CLA - a car termed by its maker as ‘the cleverest Mercedes ever made’ - the forthcoming new Polestar 2, and whatever Tesla might cook up to replace the 3. Plus entice existing buyers out of their i4 when the time comes. So, yeah, very important indeed.
Sharing architecture with the iX3 means plenty is common between the two BMWs, though plenty is different as well. Design is the most obvious change; despite the new name, an i3 is still familiar as a 3 Series-sized BMW, propeller badges proudly nestled into each end, kidneys present and correct and the rear axle a focus. There’s even a Hofmeister kink. At 4,760mm long, 1,865mm wide and 1,480mm tall, the i3 is essentially the same size as an existing G20 3 Series, which is 4,713mm long, 1,827mm wide and 1,440mm tall, just for reference. The biggest dimensional change is in wheelbase, now at 2,897mm from 2,851mm, boosting interior space and pushing wheels right out to the corners. Note how small the overhangs are here compared to a 3 Series.
See as well how closely this car resembles the 2023 Vision Neue Klasse concept - from the look of the lights to the design of the bumpers. And well, without sounding basic, isn’t it nice to see a small saloon that’s just a small(ish) saloon? BMW suggests this is a 2.5-box design that’s ‘immediately recognisable as a BMW 3 Series’; we’d say that might not be the case for some, though it’s refreshingly just a four-door sedan. It isn’t attempting to be some kind of crossover, or a hatch trying to be a fastback, or a saloon trying to be a coupe. Despite some radical changes, a 3 Series saloon is still just a saloon.
And quite a handsome one from here, if inevitably embellished by a launch specification that includes 21-inch (!) wheels, M Le Castellet Blue and going without window tints. That’s never going to happen in real life. BMW points to the combination of the short overhangs and ‘powerfully shaped arches’ to set the sporty stance, which will presumably further beef up for the M version. Up front, the ‘iconic BMW radiator grille and twin headlights seamlessly integrate with the front sensors, creating a unified visual element that exemplifies the harmony of geometry and light’ - and there’s plenty more where that came from. But credit where it’s due to BMW, this isn’t the mess of sensors and camera so many seem so keen on right now, and we’d wager it’s a less controversial reinterpretation of the grille than the M3 and M4. They’re even keen to use the ‘shark-nose’ term again.
The rear is just as dramatic, a ‘new, abstract form’ of the familiar L-shaped lights extending to accentuate width and badge given pride of place. Customers will be given a host of animations and lighting packages to personalise the i3’s exterior, with features including Welcome Light Animation and an Iconic Glow exterior package. Even with those, this feels like a more traditional BMW look than the iX3.
Speaking of the SUV, expect the saloon to take plenty of what has already been praised from a driving perspective and improve it further. BMW reckons that ‘sportiness, precise handling, and long-distance comfort are seamlessly merged to form an exceptional blend’, thanks to stroke-dependent dampers, a five-link rear axle, and ‘highly preloaded bearings’ for the anti-roll bars that should further benefit handling. There’s adaptive M suspension as an option, plus something called Soft-Stop included, which ought to mean serene slowing down because of how precisely the motors can be controlled.
All of that is underpinned by the Heart of Joy; if you haven’t heard enough already about one of the four ‘superbrains’ in a Neue Klasse BMW, there’s plenty to follow. It’s the unit responsible for making the i3 drive like a BMW should, controlling drive, recuperation, braking, and some steering functions for ‘exceptionally effortless and assured handling.’ As you may have heard already, the Heart of Joy is said to react 10 times faster than any previous system, so hopes will be high that this electric BMW feels like a BMW behind the wheel. For those who want to take the wheel, of course, rather than rely on Driving Assistant Plus and BMW Symbiotic Drive (which aims to create an interplay of human and artificial intelligence).
The considerable amount of tech in an i3 will be controlled by an interior that will look familiar from the iX3, with the pillar-to-pillar Panoramic iDrive, the 17.9-inch Free Cut Design Central Display, an optional 3D Head-up Display, and a steering wheel unlike anything else from BMW. It’s attention-grabbing enough to distract from the fact that there’s no conventional driver’s display, with vital info on the Panoramic Vision or HUD. The wheel itself features Shy Tech controls, which means the buttons are only illuminated when their function is available; driving assistance is on the left, media on the right, with haptic feedback so you know which is which without looking down from the road. It’ll be easy once you know how.
And if not, there’s a host of voice-activated features possible, BMW Operating System X (an i5 is still plodding along on OS 8.5) able to help out the Intelligent Personal Assistant, which itself benefits from Amazon Alexa+ AI; BMW says this is a ‘technological quantum leap focused on added customer value’ as it uses a Large Language Model and can form its own answers. In a 3 Series! The idea being that, even in a screen-heavy, button-light environment, the ergonomics and tech should mean eyes never have to leave the road. Which would be some achievement given that happens in just about every new car. Of the overall interior concept, BMW reckons that ‘physical and digital operating elements combine to create a unified user experience that is consistently designed with driver orientation and ergonomics in mind’. And it’s a 3 Series with proper space inside for rear-seat passengers - truly a revolution indeed.
As with the SUV, the Neue Klasse saloon launches as a 50 xDrive model; expect more powerful and range-ier models in time. For now, the vital statistics are a sixth-generation BMW eDrive system, using an 800-volt battery architecture so it can be charged at up to 400kW; set the nav to a charger and the i3 will prep the battery to the optimum charging temperature without any further instruction. At the rear axle— or ‘primary drive axle’, because old habits die hard— is an electrically excited synchronous motor, said to be more efficient than a permanent magnet motor design.
The front end is supplied by a asynchronous motor, the combo of which BMW believes is another quantum leap for the i3 (told you it was an important car): ‘Together, they reduce energy losses by 40 per cent, reduce the weight of the drive system by 10 per cent, and reduce manufacturing costs by 20 per cent [the ASM is made of iron and aluminium] compared to the already powerful previous generation.’ It means a 469hp car that can deliver up to 559 miles of range (the iX3 is up to 500 on the WLTP score). BMW hasn’t yet confirmed the battery size, but expect it to at least match the 108.7kWh (usable) capacity employed by the iX3. Whatever it turns out to be, the i3 will offer up Vehicle-to-Load, Vehicle-to-Home, and Vehicle-to-Grid functionality, with your cable stored in a 31-litre frunk.
What else do you need to know? Well, this is the beginning of the i3 story in every sense (this i3, at least), with over-the-air updates for that dizzying array of features coming probably sooner than expected; BMW isn’t alone in suggesting that software will determine personality going forward, so as well as updates for this car, the Android Open Source Project architecture will be in other models. For what must be the first time, thanks to ultra-wideband and Bluetooth tech, the BMW Digital Key Plus will be the preferred vehicle key, so best pass on that old tricolour keyring to someone else now.
As well as BMW ID inside, with up to seven accounts possible, My Modes like Sport, Efficient and Silent can tailor the driving experience of the i3 from chassis configuration to interior display. Plus, with supply chain CO2 reduced by a third for the i3, BMW says that there’s a CO2e benefit versus a combustion engine in as little as two years. Oh yes, and there’s an optional M Sport package for the i3, which brings blue brake calipers, a sports steering wheel, mirrors that project an M logo onto the ground, and an M Aerodynamic package. You won’t want it, everyone will get it. It’s nice to see that some things about the i3 are still recognisably 3 Series.
Well done if you’ve made it this far! But you won't be alone: it’s not every day that a new BMW 3 Series is announced to the world, and likewise an electric car that seems so significant. There’ll be plenty more to learn, no doubt, with a proper poke around and drive (a kerbweight was notably absent from the 31-page press release), but for now, you know as much about the i3 as anyone. If it really does drive with some proper BMW polish - and its sibling suggests it will - while also offering up competitive efficiency and a usefully tech-enhanced interior, there’ll surely be little stopping it. Production of the i3 begins in August, with first deliveries due towards the end of the year. If the £60k iX3 is anything to go by, expect to pay around £55,000.
55k for a 470hp BMW is pretty good value as well.
If the battery is 108kW that would be 15 hours for a full charge…
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