BMW has long said it would launch at least six next-generation electric vehicles by the end of 2027. According to a fresh report from Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, two more could be in the pipeline. The reputable German newspaper claims to know more about the new wave of EVs from Bavaria.
Aside from the already confirmed iX3 coming in 2025 and the i3 sedan a year after, FAZ alleges three will be exclusive to China. Specifically, standard- and long-wheelbase i3 sedans along with a stretched iX3. That would make sense considering that the new Designworks studio in Shanghai has been working on China-specific Neue Klasse EVs for a while.
That brings the total so far to five NK-based cars. The remaining three are claimed to be an i3 Touring, an iX4, and another car about the size of the 4 Series. It’s unclear whether the latter is a coupe, convertible, or something else. We’ve heard rumors of an i4 Coupe but nothing is official.
The standard-wheelbase iX3 for global markets will be made at a new BMW factory in Debrecen, Hungary in the second half of 2025. The global i3 sedan is going to be assembled at home in Munich, Germany. Besides China, the only other location confirmed to build NK-based cars is San Luis Potosi in Mexico by 2027.
BMW also intends to make at least six electric models in Spartanburg by the end of the decade. However, it hasn’t clarified how many will ride on the Neue Klasse platform. From what we’ve heard, there are plans for an iX5, iX6, and an iX7 on the current CLAR architecture. The current-generation models available with combustion engines are all built at the US plant. Their successors are widely believed to retain ICE power and likely add EV derivatives.
By 2030, BMW will have likely added even more NK cars to its ever-growing portfolio. At the bottom end of the lineup, there could be i1 and/or i2 models to pick up where the quirky i3 left off. The BMW Group still believes EVs will account for half of annual sales by 2030. Around the same time, MINI and Rolls-Royce will become purely electric brands.
Source: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung