BMW stated last year that the 7-series, its flagship car, was going to be available with a fully electric drivetrain in its next generation. Now, the Bavarian automaker has revealed the EV version’s name, as well as teaser photographs of a disguised prototype testing in difficult conditions at the BMW Group’s winter test center near the Arctic Circle in Sweden. BMW claims it is testing driving dynamics as well as the electric powertrain’s capacity to endure the extreme cold on ice Swedish roads.
Although BMW’s camouflage effectively hides the i7’s genuine form, researchers can figure out a few elements. The horizontally oriented headlights are situated low in the front end, and a cut line appears to run across the lights’ top and the grille, giving the car a furrowed-brow appearance. The lower front bumper has small holes for the battery cooling and thin vertical air intakes project from the margins of the headlights. The rear end is tightly hidden, but the Hofmeister kink in side windows, a signature BMW design detail, can be seen.
The i7 will feature the fifth generation of the BMW’s eDrive technology, which is already in use in the iX SUV, according to BMW. The i7 is “based on the same vehicle idea as all following model variants of the BMW 7 Series,” according to BMW, which also plans to sell gas-powered and hybridized models of the upcoming 7-series alongside the i7. The i7 will be unveiled in 2022 and will compete with other high-end electric vehicles like the Lucid Motors Air and Mercedes EQS.
According to BMW’s annual conference, Germany, the company is pushing forward with even more broad electric vehicles and increased environmental efforts. By 2030, the luxury manufacturer anticipates battery-electric vehicles to account for about half of its global sales.
The chairman of the board, Oliver Zipse, issued the following statement: “We expect to have delivered about two million fully electric vehicles to consumers by the end of 2025. Over the next five years, we plan to increase sales of fully electric vehicles by more than 50% every year, which is more than ten times the current rate “the year 2020.”
While BMW’s primary focus will be on extending its battery-electric vehicle (BEV) lineup, the carmaker has also announced intentions to deliver a small number of BMW I Hydrogen NEXT models, though it’s unclear when or where they’ll be available. “We might also picture it as a production car,” the business said in a press release, implying that I Hydrogen NEXT is a pilot initiative rather than a traditionally built vehicle available for buy or lease.