The Paris Motor Show kicked off with a bang. The BMW Group presented all the goodies it had in store for us and the speeches officials from Munich held were more interesting than ever as they focused on the electrified future. The CEO of the company, Mr. Harald Krüger started off his speech with a couple of rather interesting reveals, including the launch date for the upcoming BMW i4.
After mentioning the fact that BMW has already sold 300,000 electrified cars and that the plans for the future include three fully electric models in the shape of the MINI Electric (coming next year), BMW iX3 (coming in 2020) and BMW iNext (coming in 2021), he also said “it is my pleasure to announce that the BMW i4 will also be arriving in 2021.” That’s the first time any official offered a clear launch date for the i4 which is probably the most anticipated EV model from BMW among the ones mentioned before.
Sure, the iNext will be the most interesting one as it will have the most technology, becoming the company’s flagship when it arrives. However, it will also most likely be the most expensive EV on offer at the time of launch and not everyone will be able to afford one. On the other hand, the BMW i4 will be the more affordable choice. Similar in size to a 4 Series Gran Coupe, it will most likely also be cheaper than the iX3 even though the difference between them will probably be pretty small.
Therefore, by the year 2021 BMW will have five fully-electric models in its range. Will that be enough? Remains to be seen but the most important factor here will be the performance and range they offer as that’s what going to persuade customers to buy them. It’s already pretty obvious that the Germans are trying to offer an EV in more than one segment, from SUV to classic sedan, and that’s definitely welcome as it will cater to a number of styles.
