BMW is starting to define its third model, the i, which will arrive after 2020

The R&D teams at BMW have got down to work to decide which and how the third member of its i vehicle family will be. The head of this area, Klaus Fröhlich, has confirmed to Automotive News Europe that they are focused on making the most of this new “brainstorming” that will lead to its next model, powered by alternative energies, with total freedom when it comes to setting the guidelines.

The name, segment and other characteristics of this i remain up in the air. However, Fröhlich has offered some clues as to what can be ruled out from the start. To begin with, the car in question will not go on sale before 2020; we will have to wait more than five years to see it on the road.

Its development seems set to take even longer than that of the i8, whose first preview took shape at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2009 as the Vision EfficientDynamics prototype. As with the i3 and the i8, the third one will not derive from an existing product in the BMW range either, but will be created from scratch. This rules out the rumours suggesting it would materialise as a fully electric variant of the X5.

The role of the German brand’s i line is twofold: to change the public’s perception of this kind of car and to act as a testing laboratory for the latest technological advances achieved by the manufacturer. These goals can only be achieved if it retains the degree of relative independence from the conventional range that it currently enjoys.

Nevertheless, this does not mean they are completely disconnected; as several BMW executives have repeatedly stated in the past, the advances pioneered by the i models, such as carbon fibre or hybrid mechanics, end up in the rest of the models sooner or later.

Alongside the conception of the third i, BMW will continue working to update the i3 and i8. According to Fröhlich, the brand will focus on improving the performance and efficiency of its batteries, with one update every three years. These will make it possible to reduce the price of these vehicles, although current owners will not have the option of fitting the new components to their units, because the batteries are integrated into the chassis.

Via | Automotive News