At the Munich mobility show – we no longer say “auto” – which succeeded the Frankfurt one in the midst of the crisis, BMW made no secret of a world that is opening up for it on the electric and another which is withering, that of the thermal. He has nevertheless built his worldwide reputation as an outstanding engine manufacturer, but it seems that at home, in the immediate vicinity of his 4-cylinder-shaped seat, the flamboyant propeller manufacturer is playing an unexpected “Oktoberfest” for us. Far from the 6, 8 and 12 cylinders that dot its range, BMW is a few days ahead of Oktoberfest (from September 16) with a kind of blues.
He did not hesitate, in fact, to present to the journalists present at the preview of the IAA his plan for a new class of automobiles (“Neue Klasse”) intended to contain the American and Chinese invasions. Because, at the same time, a stone’s throw away, Tesla, although not a fan of trade fairs and the press, unveils a Tesla 3, its sales champion, heavily overhauled while the Chinese number one in electrics, BYD, is just finishing the journalists’ tests of the Seal, a top-of-the-range anti-Tesla but also BMW, Mercedes or Audi. The Point was there and where was it? In Munich, of course.
Well inspired for these two actors who continue to play with European nerves, Germans in particular. BMW has therefore split a very official presentation of its electrical plan with an interesting prototype to illustrate the point. Distinctive sign, it is rather beautiful and rid of the gigantic nostrils that adorn some current models, thermal or hybrid. It was about time, one might say, because this complete range, built on new fundamentals, will only appear in dealerships from 2025.
It represents “30% more autonomy, 30% faster charging, 25% more efficiency”, assured one of the group’s leaders, Frank Weber. We imagine that he takes Tesla as a basis of comparison. And not without lyricism to continue: “With the Neue Klasse, we have made the largest investment in the history of the company. We’re not just writing the next chapter of BMW, we’re writing a whole new book. This is why the Neue Klasse will have an impact on all future model generations. »
BMW’s ambitions are not small since it intends to start from this unprecedented architecture and to be forced to thank you to sell half of its production by 2030. But it does it in its own way, taking the time necessary to introduce significant innovations that justify the figures announced above. Indeed, it will produce its own high-efficiency electric motors and will employ new cylindrical battery cells, whose energy density is more than 20% higher than that of the prismatic cells used previously.
BMW nevertheless released the calculator and intends to offer this progress while maintaining its competitiveness and its margins. If he succeeds, he can always claim that his now 50-year-old cylinder-shaped seat is actually prescient and evokes the shape of his new batteries. But there remains a hope, that of the other half of the production on which BMW is not very vocal but is working hard. Conversion to hydrogen is part of its plans, as with Toyota, and, given the service record of the two manufacturers, it would be wrong to bury the heat engine too quickly.
