BMW I4 News

BMW has globally unveiled some tweaks to its Tesla Model 3-rivalling i4 electric liftback that are set to go into production from July.Gone is the high-performance BMW i4 M50, and in its place is the new i4 M60.This dual-motor all-wheel drive flagship now produces a total system output of 442kW of power, which is up 42kW on the outgoing i4 M50.BMW claims the i4 M60 is capable of doing the 0-100km/h sprint in 3.7 seconds, which is 0.2 seconds faster than the i4 M50. Total speed is unchanged at 225km/h.While there is extra power, it has come at the expense of claimed range. The i4 M60 is claimed to be able to travel up to 433km, according to WLTP testing, whereas the i4 M50 was claimed to be able to travel up to 480km, according to WLTP testing.This is despite all i4s from July production onwards getting silicon carbide semiconductor components, which in the entry-level i4 eDrive35 is claimed to reduce energy consumption by 4.5 per cent and add up to 22km of range.These latest additions and changes to the BMW i4 line-up follows a minor facelift that was unveiled in April 2024.At this stage this updated model still hasn’t arrived in Australia."Any updates regarding the BMW i4 line-up for Australia will be announced in due course," said a BMW Australia spokesperson.This update brought subtle exterior revisions including new grille designs, different LED headlight signatures, new alloy wheels, as well as more paint colours.The car also received the option of Laserlight rear lights in the style of the M4 CSL.Inside there was a new steering wheel, reduced physical buttons and controls on the instrument panel, new interior trim elements, CraftedClarity glass applications, as well as ambient lighting as standard.The BMW i4 launched locally back in 2022 as an all-electric counterpart to the 4 Series Gran Coupe, which has been subsequently axed in Australia.In the first four months of 2024, BMW sold a total of 382 i4 examples, which is down 42.4 per cent year-on-year.For context, Tesla sold a total of 2266 Model 3 examples over the same period of time. Hyundai also sold 58 Ioniq 6 examples and Polestar sold 179 Polestar 2 examples.

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BMW has used China’s Beijing motor show as the launch pad for updated versions of its i4 medium EV sedan and combustion-powered 4 Series Gran Coupe four-door ‘coupe’ models.Scheduled to enter production in July this year at the BMW Group’s main plant in Munich, headline news is the new all-wheel drive i4 xDrive40 model producing 295kW/600Nm while delivering a range of up to 548 km (WLTP). All i4 and 4 Series variants feature a revised version of the brand’s iconic ‘kidney’ grille (“half enclosed” on the i4 EV) and new design LED headlights with adaptive function, matrix high beam, ‘urban lights’ (wider light distribution at speeds below 50 km/h) with ‘Laserlight’ tail-lights optionally available.On M Performance combustion models, and as part of the ‘M Sport’ option package, a black high-gloss diffuser and larger (100mm) tailpipes are added, with a carbon-rich ‘M Sport Package Pro’ also offered.Two new metallic colours, ‘Cape York’ (green) and ‘Fire Red’, have been added to the model range palette, while inside, a new flat-bottom steering wheel with illuminated multifunction buttons (plus gearshift paddles on combustion models) is now standard.Synthetic leather sports seats are standard, with ‘Vernasca’ leather trim available, new ‘Dark Graphite’ interior trim elements have been added and several ventilation and climate functions have been shifted to touch-sensitive controls on the central screen (also accessible via voice-command).Ambient lighting (with additional contour lighting around the central vents) is now standard on all models.For global markets the i4 range consists of four grades - eDrive35, eDrive40, the new xDrive40 and the M50 xDrive, while the 4 Series Gran Coupe line-up spans five models - 420i, 430i xDrive, M440i xDrive, 420d and 430d xDrive.In response to a request for details on local specification, pricing and likely arrival timing BMW Australia told CarsGuide, “Any updates regarding model line-ups of the BMW i4 and 4 Series Gran Coupé for Australia will be announced in due course.” For reference, Australian pricing for the BMW i4 currently ranges between $85,900 (eDrive35) and $133,900 (M50 xDrive), before on-road costs, while the 4 Series Gran Coupe covers a spread from $83,500 (420i M Sport) to $129,000 (M440i xDrive).

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At last, it seems a car-maker has realised just how silly it is to have an entirely different brand name for its electric car line-up. Yes, Mercedes-Benz sounds as though it's going to drop its EQ brand name for its EVs, because it’s all going electric, right? So what’s the point? Now we just have to wait for all the other car manufacturers to realise that it was all a big mistake.Yep, last week I wrote a story about how Mercedes-Benz was rumoured to be planning to axe its EQ sub-brand name.Currently, Mercedes-Benz uses EQ to denote an electric vehicle in its line-up. There’s the EQB which is an electric version of the GLB, the EQE which is an electric E-Class, and so on. Well, a Reuters report questioned Mercedes-Benz over the rumours to which the car maker responded with this statement:“With the goal of our parent Mercedes-Benz becoming fully electric by the end of the decade, we will adapt the positioning of the vehicles and thus the use of the brand in line with the times, but it is too early for details on this at the moment.”Sounds very much like the bosses at Benz have realised the whole EQ thing was not a very good idea. An electric E-Class in the future will be an E-Class, as there won’t be a combustion engine version.So what about the rest of the carmakers who have also gone down the same dead-end street?I’m looking at you Hyundai with your Ioniq brand - your Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6. Great cars, but why not just use your existing nameplates such as i30 and Tucson and Santa Fe? Are you going to throw those in the bin?And Volkswagen. You’re doing it, too. There’s the ID.3 which is obviously being lined up to replace the Golf. The Golf, which celebrates its 50th anniversary next year. Nice birthday present. You're old, get out. Word is, Volkswagen will keep the Golf name for that petrol car only for as long as it exists and the same goes for Polo, Tiguan, Passat and the rest. You can get sentimental about a 2009 Golf GTI, but will anybody be looking back on their ID.3 the same way? And Kia with your imaginatively named EV6 and EV9. I’m being sarcastic, Kia. Come on, these aren’t phones or computers we're talking about. Sure, Carnival probably isn't the best name and neither is Stonic, nor Seltos or Sportage and what was going on with Pro_ceed GT? But that’s beside the point. When it comes to names give me a Sportage Electric over an EV6 any day.BMW your names have always been extremely methodical and read like a list of ammunition supplies. When you did try to start bringing in actual words you messed it all up with things like Gran Coupe, but at least your electric names aren’t completely ridiculous. Then iX, the i4, the i7 -  they make sense even if the whole ‘i’ thing is as out of date as an iPod.And Audi. Don’t even get me started on e-tron.Why do we have these EV sub brands when the whole car industry is going to go electric anyway? Well, it could be because vehicle development plans can stretch decades ahead. They need to create a name separate to the current line-up as the new electric vehicles will be on entirely different platforms, so they are essentially totally different cars.Car-makers could also be protecting their breadwinning petrol and diesel models too, from the potential failure of electric models by keeping them in separate ‘baskets’ until the EV models start to prove themselves and pay their way.These electric sub-brands could be being used as testing labs until the technology, the charging, the batteries and the cars are good enough to wear the regular nameplates?So what’s going to happen? Are we going to go through a whole series of Final Edition i30s and Farewell Special Golfs, or will car companies see the light like Mercedes-Benz it seems and drop the electric sub-brand name thing altogether?Well, it will come down to money. If the car company feels that losing a loved nameplate is detrimental in how customers view and connect with the brand, and especially if the action significantly affects sales, then you’ll probably see the name stay… or return.Imagine the fanfare (and the sales) around bringing back the Golf nameplate after everybody thought it was long gone.Perhaps that’s been the plan all along…

You might not be ready to accept that the future of automotive performance is electric, but BMW customers are flocking to the first M Performance EV en masse, with the i4 M50 a chance to beat the M4 this year for the sales crown.That's according to BMW Au

Whether it is a more mature market or BMW's new approach to selling electric vehicles (EVs), the Bavarian brand is now finding more success with its i4, iX3 and iX than it did with the ground-breaking i3 and i8.Released locally back in 2014, the i3 electr

I am very excited by the future of electric vehicles (EVs) - which isn't an easy statement to make given my love of all things petrol powered.One of the most common complaints about EVs is that they are 'boring', in large part because they are quiet and t