BMW i

  • 2014 BMW i3 (German-market version), Amsterdam, Oct 2013

    BMW surprised its traditionalist owners when releasing the X5 SUV back in 1999, but there's no risk of the same happening in its new electric brand. The automaker has confirmed that the cleaner, greener side of the its range, BMW i, won't get an SUV option, even though a range of other vehicles is planned. SUVs "don't fit the brand" according to i3 city car's project manager, Roland Kowalski (via Car Advice). Kowalski says BMW hasn't ruled out an i-car in every sector--denoted by the traditional numeric naming scheme--but the company isn't thinking about an SUV. Instead, says Kowalski, "For...

  • 2014 BMW i3 Electric Car: Connectivity, Navigation Highlights
    BMW i Genius: Artificial Intelligence Answers Electric Car Queries

    It takes customers a little while to get used to any new vehicle, but for new vehicles like the BMW i3 and upcoming BMW i8 sports car it could take a little longer than most. As electric vehicles, and uniquely-styled and equipped ones at that, there's plenty to learn. Just how do the cars work?...

  • BMW Concept X5 eDrive plug-in hybrid
    BMW Concept5 X5 eDrive: Plug-In Hybrid SUV Destined For Frankfurt

    We often say that the biggest gains in fuel efficiency are to be made by the least efficient vehicles--and recently, several automakers seem to be taking that message to heart. Over the last few days, there seems to have been a constant stream of trucks, luxury sedans and SUVs all offering improved...

  • 2014 BMW i3
    2014 BMW i3 Range Extender: Heavier, Less Electric Range, Less Performance

    Electric or range-extended electric? It's a choice that normally means selecting between entirely different cars, but when the 2014 BMW i3 debuts in the U.S. next Spring customers will be able to choose both options in the same car. The range-extended option marks out the i3 as a competitor for...

  • 2014 BMW i3 leaked
    2014 BMW i3 Electric Car Revealed In Leaked Images

    BMW's long-awaited i3 electric car and range-extended electric car aren't officially unveiled until next Monday--but leaked images finally reveal the production car's form. Unsurprisingly, the pictures of the production i3, spotted by Autocar, show a car that doesn't differ too greatly from the...

  • Teaser for 2014 BMW i3
    2014 BMW i3 Electric Car Unveiling On July 29: Video

    The 2014 BMW i3 electric car is coming... but you knew that already. Still, it gives BMW a chance to release another video, albeit one that tells us absolutely nothing save for the car's official date of unveiling: July 29th. Luckily, previous videos, plenty of spy shots and numerous auto show...

  • BMW i8 Concept Spyder

    It's a tough job selling electric cars anywhere in huge numbers at the moment, with much of the buying public still skeptical of the potential benefits. Spare a thought for those trying to sell electric cars in Germany then, where buyers are traditionally even more conservative in their tastes. To this end, BMW has taken the very Germanic, no-nonsense step of telling his countrymen to "get over it" and drop their fear of electric vehicle technology. According to Bloomberg, BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has told his fellow Germans they should put aside their fears of the unknown and embrace...

  • BMW i3 Coupe concept
    BMW Electric Car Owners Get Gas-Powered Loaner For Longer Trips

    Rightly or wrongly, many potential electric car owners are a little put off by the fear of occasionally running out of electricity before their destination--a condition termed "range anxiety". In reality, it's something that existing electric car owners grow out of, once they're used to their...

  • BMW i3 Coupe concept
    BMW Debuts i3 Coupe Concept In Los Angeles

    Though BMW is still some months away from launching its i3 electric hatchback and i8 plug-in hybrid sports car, the brand is already looking with an eye to the future of its electric car range. At this week’s Los Angeles Auto Show, BMW is displaying the latest member of its i Series, in...

  • BMW i 'Born Electric' World Tour hits New York City
    BMW Shows Off i3, i8 In New York On 'Born Electric' Tour

    Not only is BMW talking about its commitment in its plug-in car plans, it's putting that confidence on display, too. The BMW i 'Born Electric' world tour has just kicked off in New York City, putting the company's electric and plug-in products on display for all to see. Running for a week in...

  • BMW i8 and i3 concept cars
    BMW Exec Reaffirms Commitment To Plug-In Cars

    Automakers don't give up profits easily. So when one of the world's most profitable, BMW, commits to building a range of electric vehicles, they have to be taken seriously. BMW Chairman Dr. Norbert Reithofer has reaffirmed this commitment during a recent teleconference. "We consider electric...

  • BMW ActiveE electric car at a charge point
    BMW Invests In ChargePoint To Improve Global Charging Network

    BMW has announced a strategic investment in Coulomb Technologies, the company behind the ChargePoint charging network. ChargePoint is the largest online global charging network, operating in 14 countries. The online network allows users to coordinate their charging via the cloud, with online...

  • BMW i8 Concept Spyder

    A few years back, Mitsubishi rebranded its electric minicar, the iMiEV, as the Mitsubishi i. Not only was this confusing, as the car is still known as the iMiEV elsewhere, but it's also an autocorrect nightmare and leaves little red squiggles throughout your document whenever you write about it. Hacks everywhere will be breathing sighs of relief that BMW has now added a new designation to its BMW i vehicles, called eDrive--and the first car to bear this new tag was the 2015 BMW i8 Concept Spyder, unveiled at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. Intercapitalization specialist and occasional producer of...

  • 2013 BMW i3 Electric Car Smartphone App
    2013 BMW i3 Electric Car iPhone App Screenshots Teased: 2012 Detroit Auto Show

    We’re less than a week away from the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, and that means automakers are eagerly dropping hints about what we’ll be seeing next week. For BMW, that means posting six screenshots from its unreleased iOS smartphone application for the 2013...

  • BMW i3 Concept, Nov. 2011
    Are The BMW i3 And i8 Electric Cars A Mission Impossible?

    At the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show, BMW introduced its press conference with a preview of the next installment of the Tom Cruise Mission Impossible movie series. BMW features prominently in this production, with its plug-in hybrid supercar i8 as one of the team’s advanced tools. The movie's...

  • BMW i3 and i8 preview, New York City, November 2011, photo by Tom Moloughney
    Sneak Peek: BMW i3 And i8 U.S. Debut Before LA Auto Show

    Yesterday afternoon, BMW hosted a Special Sneak Peek Preview Event of the BMW i3 and BMW i8 concept electric cars in New York. Both cars will make their official U.S. debut at next week's Los Angeles Auto Show. After an hour-long photo session, we were addressed by Richard Kim, exterior designer...

  • BMW i8 Concept live photos, 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show
    2014 BMW i8 Live Photos: 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show

    BMW has taken a radical departure from its traditional brand of teutonic sedans with its "i" range. The i3 is a carbon-bodied electric city car and the i8 a plug-in hybrid sports coupe, and both display wild styling and high-tech features. We were at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show to get a closer...

  • BMW i Launch Event, Frankfurt, July 2011
    2014 BMW i3 Electric Car: Motorcycle Engine As Range Extender

    Diversity among electric cars is rapidly expanding, from the all-electric Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi 'i' to the upcoming Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid, which provides just 9 to 13 miles of electric range. Now, it turns out, the 2014 BMW i3--the all-electric urban four-door subcompact that BMW showed...

  • BMW i3 Concept

    Driving is often a pain, particularly in dense, congested urban cores. Start and stop, brake suddenly, stay carefully in your lane, drive defensively, then park in tight spaces. What if the car could do all that for you? Last week, BMW showed off its new BMW i3 Concept, which points the way toward the 2014 BMW i3 battery-electric car that it will put on sale in late 2013. The i3 may have the highest degree of autonomous driving we've yet seen--though no one present at the event actually drove the cars, so for the moment, all we have to go on is BMW's description of the "visionary mobility...

  • BMW Megacity Vehicle official teaser
    Official BMW i Preview Coming Tomorrow

    BMW is holding a global press conference in Frankfurt, Germany tomorrow to promote its new i division aimed at sustainable motoring solutions for the future. Our own green car expert John Voelcker is on his way to Frankfurt as you read this and will be bringing us all the information direct from...

  • BMW i
    BMW Buys Leasing Firm To Launch Its i Series Electric Cars

    BMW has acquired the car-leasing unit of Dutch bank ING. The move will give BMW the ability to launch their i Series electric cars with leasing aimed at both consumers and fleet customers.

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