BMW i5 "could be launched in 2016 as a 2017 model"

What It Is: The third model of BMW's "i" range of green-themed vehicles...

We believe BMW will use a lot of hardware from the i3's "life module" and "drive module" architecture, but its styling will be sufficiently distinguished. Inside, the i5 will likely be a bit more conventional in style than the i3 with its provocative choice of shapes and materials.

Why It Matters: BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer wants to build his legacy as a visionary leading the company into the anticipated age of electric mobility, and therefore expanding the "i" range of vehicles is a priority. While the i3 is a city car with a few compromises, such as the rear-hinged “suicide” rear doors, and the i8 is a high-priced and low-volume supercar, the i5 could appeal to a larger customer base.

The i5 will bring about much-needed economies of scale to help reduce the cost of batteries and electric modules, as well as the carbon-fiber components needed to trim weight to acceptable levels...

Platform: The i5 will share a lot of components with the i3, which itself can be interpreted as a tall, if short, wagon. The i5's electronic architecture will allow it to be updated with the latest infotainment and driver-assistance technology. The interior will be flexible, allowing up to five people to travel in comfort, and luggage space will be generous. Critically, BMW is making room in the i5 for a larger lithium-ion battery pack than in the i3, which means a better electric range—one that could approach 200 miles.

Powertrains: Power will come from BMW's permanent-magnet AC synchronous electric motor, likely to be rated at 170 horsepower, which will power the rear axle through a single-speed transmission. The i5 will be offered with an optional range-extender, possibly a 1.5-liter three-cylinder from BMW's new, modular engine family. The aforementioned lithium-ion battery pack would be positioned in the center of the vehicle...

Estimated Arrival and Price: The BMW i5 could be launched in 2016 as a 2017 model. It will cost around $50K, with available telematics options and a range extender bringing the price close to $60K...

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...where the BMW i5 will come in, as a car capable of appealing to those who want to travel longer distances and carry more stuff under electric power. Details are still being kept under tight guard, but an interview with i’s head of product, Henrik Wenders, has shed some light on what we can expect.

First, and most significant, we have confirmation that BMW will offer a range-extending internal-combustion engine as an option, meaning that the i5 will be an electric vehicle rather than, as some reports have previously suggested, a hybrid. “The range-extender plays an important part in the next years when range remains a limiting factor and a source of anxiety,” Wenders told us when we spoke to him. “Of course, once we get to a range that is more comparable with that of an internal-combustion engine it will become obsolete. So this is the reason I can say we will continue to offer the range-extender in the future as optional equipment, to address different customer needs.”...

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evnow said:

We should note that this is pure speculation. I don't think even a bit of what they have written is sourced from anyone in BMW. Just an exercise in fantasy where someone at C&D renders their imagination of a new car and write some imaginary stuff about it.

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BMW i5 gets rendered once again

Several rumors around a future BMW i car surfaced in the last few months. The one mode that always gets mentioned in reports from around the world is the BMW i5, a crossover-like electric car which aims to take on the successful cars developed by Tesla.

According to sources, the underpinnings of the BMW i5 are known internally as FSAR, short for flat battery storage assembly, similar to the modular CLAR platform underpinning several new BMWs allowing multiple cars to be channeled through the same factory...

These new renderings from OmniAuto perfectly describe the future i5: high ground clearance with a crossover-style.

Whether BMW will call it the i5 or i6, or any other name, it remains to be seen, but what it’s almost certain is the fact that the new electric car will arrive before the end of this decade...

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TomT said:

I was at a BMW Power Brunch Sunday where there were a couple of i management folks from the U.S. and Germany... The subject of an i5 came up and all the would say is, "sooner than you might think..."

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GetOffYourGas said:

TomT said:

I was at a BMW Power Brunch Sunday where there were a couple of i management folks from the U.S. and Germany... The subject of an i5 came up and all the would say is, "sooner than you might think..."

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How wonderfully vague. I might think this fall. Or I might think 2025. They don't have any idea when one "might think" an i5 would arrive, given the spotty, unreliable rumors we have all heard about it.

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