While the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency grabs headlines today, kneecapping electric cars and emissions rules, a different kind of bottom-line skeptical take shouldn’t be overlooked: Are electric vehicles, in fact, as sustainable as consumers think?
For BMW, a new EV model line to be announced this fall will answer that question with a Yes. For some companies, the initial carbon footprint of battery-and-EV manufacturing can be high, making it an uphill climb to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. However, BMW’s “Neue Klasse” (or “New Class”) models will offer not just sporty performance and competitiveness with China, but also a key milestone toward the automaker’s goal of net-zero corporate emissions by 2050.
BMW will officially unveil its first Neue Klasse model in early September—the compact iX3 SUV. It’s the first of multiple BMW models that will share a newly efficient, ultra-fast-charging electric architecture. In Munich, where IEEE Spectrum attended a Neue Klasse media preview, the automaker rolled out its bold plans for sustainable EV production.
BMW Re-envisions the EV Battery
Let’s start with the pricey heart of any EV, its battery. BMW will ditch today’s prismatic cells for new “Gen6” cylindrical batteries. Developed entirely in house, and built in a partnership with China’s CATL, the nickel-rich cells feature a 46-mm diameter and come in two heights, either 95- or 120-mm, for greater flexibility across different models. BMW’s cells boost energy density by 20 percent compared to its fifth-generation batteries. The new cells charge 30 percent faster, too. That means fewer battery cells and electricity are required to cover the same distance.
Those cells are integrated directly into a pack with no surrounding modules, saving weight and space. That high-voltage battery then connects directly to the chassis as a structural component, bringing more mass reduction: The top of the battery case actually forms the floor of a Neue Klasse vehicle.
BMW claims that 50 percent of these batteries’ lithium, nickel and cobalt will come from recycled materials, as automakers seek a more-circular battery economy and reduced reliance on freshly mined minerals. In production, BMW says its batteries’ overall carbon footprint drops by 42 percent. And the iX3 will reduce the car’s total carbon footprint by 34 percent versus its predecessor over a 200,000 kilometer (124,260 miles) life cycle, under a full “well-to-wheels” emissions analysis.
How is that possible? For one, iX3 production kicks off late this year in a factory in Debrecen, Hungary designed to operate on 100-percent renewable energy, including solar power generated on site. The automaker plans to build some Neue Klasse models in China as well, and eventually at its Spartanburg, S.C. factory, which is also BMW’s largest.
BMW’s Hungary Plant Re-envisions the Sustainable Factory
The new Hungary factory gives rise to the most slam-dunk benefit of all. Despite initially higher carbon dioxide inputs from manufacturing, BMW says its Neue Klasse SUV will reach its break-even point on carbon emissions with a comparable ICE model after less than a year for the typical owner—once their odometer crosses 21,500 km.
That represents a 34 percent CO2 reduction from its current-gen EVs. Meanwhile, if the car is charged on renewable electricity only, BMW says the break-even point drops to 17,500 kilometers, i.e. just under 11,000 miles.
Beyond its battery, roughly one-third of every Neue Klasse SUV will be made from recycled materials. Pampered BMW buyers will still be able to choose leather upholstery, but the iX3 will come standard with a vegan interior. A seat fabric called Econeer is made from 100-percent recycled PET bottles. Yarn for floor mats is sourced entirely from recycled materials, as are fabrics for the headliner that covers the cabin’s ceiling. Thermoplastics used in the storage “frunk” below the hood are made from 30-percent recycled fishing nets and other marine plastics, sourced from ports worldwide to reduce ocean pollution. A growing portion of metals are recycled as well. The BMW’s aluminum swivel bearings and hub carriers are 80-percent secondary raw materials. Wheel rims are cast from aluminum with 70-percent recycled content.
As an outspoken proponent of the United Nations’ Paris Agreement on climate, BMW says it is on track to reduce its annual carbon footprint by at least 40 million metric tons by 2030. That would represent a 26-percent drop from a baseline of 150 million metric tons in 2019. And for a luxury, legacy automaker that might be tempted to recycle its greatest hits, BMW appears serious about reinventing itself: In 2024, one of every four BMW Group models around the world (including the Mini and Rolls-Royce brands) was electrified, including a 17-percent sales share for full EVs.
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