BMW will roll out at the least 4 variants of its full-electric i5 because it expands the drivetrain alternative of its 5 Sequence household.
The i5, which can compete towards luxurious battery-electric vehicles together with the Mercedes EQE, was unveiled on Wednesday together with its combustion engine sibling, the eighth-generation 5 Sequence sedan.
The battery-electric i5 variants will likely be:
- The i5 M60 xDrive sedan, which can grow to be the flagship 5 Sequence mannequin with 602 hp and a 0 to 100 kph (62 mph) acceleration time of time of three.9 seconds.
- The entry i5 eDrive40 rear-wheel-drive sedan.
- An i5 station wagon to be offered in Europe.
- An all-wheel-drive i5 sedan mannequin that can launch in 2024.
The 5 Sequence and i5 sedan will go on sale in October. The i5 wagon will observe within the spring.
The i5 has an 81.2-kilowatt hour battery pack and a driving vary of 477 to 582 km (296 to 361 miles) underneath Europe’s WLTP testing regime.
The i5 is a part of BMW’s broader expertise push for the brand new 5 Sequence, which incorporates new infotainment, superior driving programs and linked companies geared toward positioning the automobile as a high-tech rival to the newly revealed Mercedes E-Class.
Inside, the 5 Sequence and i5 have a curved show throughout the highest of the dashboard that comes with a 12.3-inch display screen in entrance of the driving force and a 14.9-inch touchscreen within the middle of the dashboard.
BMW mentioned that occupants can now watch YouTube movies on the display screen when the automobile is stationary, offering they’ve optioned the fitting connectivity package deal. They’ll additionally play video games because of a tie-up with gaming platform AirConsole.
Working beneath and to the aspect of the show is an ‘Interplay Bar’ combining touch-sensitive controls and lights that may be animated to provide messages, for instance to point an incoming cellphone name or present when it’s secure to open the door.
BMW mentioned it has decreased inside buttons on the automobile, whereas retaining these wanted “for quick and intuitive operation” in keeping with an announcement.
Driving help tech
Superior driving help accessible on the 5 Sequence and i5 contains what the corporate calls the Energetic Lane Change Assistant, which suggests overtaking alternatives throughout multi-lane freeway driving which might be confirmed by the driving force trying within the exterior mirror. BMW mentioned this characteristic was launching first in Germany, the U.S. and Canada.
Different semi-autonomous options accessible embody Parking Assistant Plus, which shops the steering actions when pushed forwards which the automobile can then repeat in reverse for as much as 50 meters.
Drivers also can management parking maneuvers exterior of the car utilizing the My BMW app for iPhone.
The brand new BMW ID permits parking charges to be paid immediately from the 5 Sequence and i5. The perform can initially be utilized in Germany and Austria, with different European international locations following throughout 2023.
New hybrid fashions
All the brand new 5 Sequence fashions will likely be electrified with the addition of 48-volt mild-hybrid expertise on the 520i four-cylinder gasoline engine, the extra highly effective 530i with the identical engine (not accessible in Europe) and the 520d four-cylinder diesel. A six-cylinder diesel will observe in 2024, BMW mentioned.
All combustion engine fashions include an eight-speed automated transmission.
Two plug-in hybrid fashions will even be part of the line-up in 2024 with an electrical vary of as much as 100 km (62 miles), BMW mentioned.
The 530e will use a four-cylinder 2.0-liter gasoline engine whereas the BMW 550e will get an improve to a 3.0-liter six-cylinder gasoline engine.
Longer, wider, taller
The eighth-generation 5 Sequence has grown in size by 97 mm to five,060 mm in comparison with the present mannequin. It’s 32 mm wider at 1,900 mm and 36 mm taller at 1,515 mm.
BMW mentioned trunk area is 520 liters on the launch combustion engine sedan fashions whereas the i5’s trunk has a 490-liter capability
The 5 Sequence will begin at 49,850 kilos ($61,930) within the U.Okay. for the entry 520i. BMW didn’t launch costs for different markets.
The 5 Sequence was the best-selling automobile in Europe’s premium large-car phase final yr forward of the Audi A6 and the Mercedes E-Class. European gross sales of the 5 Sequence in 2022 had been 53,638, in keeping with figures from market analysts Dataforce.