BMW Concept Sedan, Slated for Production, to Bolster Electric Sub-brand

BMW showcased the i Vision Dynamics concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week — making it the third model for its i low-emissions electro-centric sub-brand. As a potential rival for Tesla’s Model 3, the i Vision Dynamics has all the hallmarks of an evolutionary automobile: an electric powerplant, absent grille, and the most boring name imaginable.

With windows tinted so black that you couldn’t tell if the sun was behind the wheel, the concept car is probably little more than a shell. We’ll take it at face value, noting that it exists as the physical representation of BMW’s promise to modernize as much as it does as a prototypical production model. However the automaker did say it will go on sale in 2021 — which is more than a little surprising.

Styled as the ever popular “four-door gran coupe,” the i Vision will be an extension of its electric sub-brand. Our guess is that it’ll be slotted above the i3 EV and use a slightly larger numeric designation with an “i” tacked on for good measure. BMW says the i Vision Dynamics concept demonstrates how the brand will “envisage future electric mobility between the i3 and i8,” heralding a new forthcoming product offensive that includes 25 electrified cars by 2025.

For the i Vision, that means a claimed electric range of 373 miles. BMW also says the EV will hit 100 kph (or 62 mph) in four seconds with a top speed of around 120 mph.

“With the i3 and i8 we have designed a revolutionary city car and a revolutionary sports car,” said BMW’s senior vice president of design, Adrian van Hooydonk, in a statement. “And now the BMW i Vision Dynamics is combining electric mobility with the core values of BMW: dynamism and elegance. We are therefore demonstrating how the product range and the design language of BMW i can be evolved further into other concepts.”

The brand also talked up the vehicle’s ultra-modern styling, which is bound to be polarizing, and its visual marriage between elegance and strength. We can agree there. The overall shape imports beefy haunches onto a flowing form with enough sharp angles to keep things interesting. But it’s overdone the “grille” for the second time this week and the overall impression is very different from the company’s current EVs.

The concept’s styling is supposed to continue into the vehicle’s cabin, which BMW described as the “interior experience of the future.” But, since the company neglected to give it transparent windows, we’re not going to speculate on it.

In addition to whatever the i Vision morphs into, BMW Group said it plans to begin production of its fully electric sub-brand flagship, the iNext, in 2021. However, the next BEV the company sells will be from Mini — followed by an electric version of the X3 in 2020.

[Images: BMW Group]