The new electric BMW i5 is due to be revealed in the coming months, having completed “the ultimate endurance test”.
The highly anticipated EV version of the next-generation BMW 5 Series was confirmed for a 2023 launch in January, but only now has Munich released images of the Mercedes-Benz EQE rival undergoing a hardcore testing programme on ice, snow and rough roads in northern Sweden.
In a year-long test phase (during which Autocar’s spy photographers spotted these camouflaged prototypes), the i5 “repeatedly demonstrated both the stability of its electric powertrain and its dynamic performance qualities”.
A debut date still hasn’t been confirmed for the i5 saloon – nor its ICE counterpart or the keenly anticipated i5 Touring estate, which was recently confirmed. But with this test programme dispatched and a 2023 launch confirmed, it’s expected to be only a matter of months until the wraps come off.
The i5 forms a major part of BMW‘s transition to a maker of electric cars. In the firm’s 2023 sales report, it said it hoped 15% of its sales in 2023 would be of EVs.
“The clear focus will be on continuing to ramp up electromobility. The next milestone for 2023 is for 15% of our total sales to come from fully electric vehicles,” said BMW sales chief Pieter Nota. “With the launch of the BMW i5 later this year, we’re taking another important step on the road to electrifying our model line-up.”
The 5 Series, which was first launched back in 1973, has been on sale in its current, seventh-generation guise since 2017. The eighth-generation car will be offered with a choice of ICE, hybrid and EV powertrains in line with BMW’s ambition to sell seven million plug-in hybrid and pure-electric vehicles by the end of 2030.
The i5 will be marked out from the 5 Series in the usual BMW EV style, featuring a blanked-off front grille, bespoke wheel designs and, based on subtle differences between two recently spotted prototypes, a bespoke rear-end design.