BMW M and i Divisions to Collaborate on Electrification?

In many ways, we can truly feel that BMW is in the middle of a turning point for the brand. It is now that the German automaker is deciding on which roads to take and what they want to represent in the future of mobility. Right now, the BMW M and i Divisions operate separately from one another. Is BMW really considering a closer relationship between the two divisions to work on electrification?

The blend of M and i actually makes sense in BMW’s plans to combine electrification and hybridization. “At the moment, if you look at the weight of batteries against the performance gains of electrification, it’s obvious the best blend of performance and dynamic technologies are still achieved by conventionally-powered models.” said Peter Quintus, BMW M’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

BMW may just take a stab at what most people think is an impossible task: developing a technically impressive and very fast electric or hybrid M car. But, there is always the factor of finding the right time to do it. “We have all the platforms and all of the technology at our disposal – including BEV [Battery Electric Vehicle] cars – and could quite quickly change the M technology [to suit electric cars] if required, because all the elements are there in their base structure. At the moment, however, we don’t think it’s the right time.”

Quintus also gave hints that future M cars may have a similar Carbon Core structure as the current 7 Series and further improving it to make the car as light as possible. “From time-to-time we analyze which models could benefit from carbon-fibre technology,”said Quintus. “But at this point in time applying this technology to a series production model will more likely be as part of a mixture of steel, aluminium and carbon-fiber, rather than a full carbon-fiber body.”

He did say that BMW M is considering a collaboration with the i Division to develop an M variant of the BMW i3 and i8. Hold on to your seats folks, things may just change quite rapidly for BMW!