BMW confirms all-electric i5 in both estate and M guise

With still a few months before its official launch, BMW has released more details on the all-new 5 Series. As a segment first, the all-electric i5 will be available as an estate. And the brand’s performance department will also have its take on the battery-powered version.

In an official statement on its website, BMW has released some preliminary details on the upcoming new-gen 5 Series. The brand promises a car that will gain in dynamics and comfort.

Not a total surprise, as this is the path the carmaker has been pursuing a while now. BMW CEO Oliver Zipse released the info during the BMW Group Annual Conference 2023, held on Tuesday.

Reveal in October

The picture shows the car under a pristine blanket, only giving a clue about the light signature of the headlamps in front, which seem to be different from the sensationally small clusters on the XM. The final design will be revealed in October this year.

Though the silhouette shows the sedan’s profile, Zipse didn’t leave any doubt about the arrival of a station wagon. “The BMW 5 Series Touring is very popular, particularly in Europe,” he said explicitly. BMW’s belief in the estate is noteworthy, as word has it that Mercedes is seriously thinking of abandoning the body type for its range.

New infotainment

Zipse also explained his motivation for approving an all-electric M. “The all-electric BMW i4 M50 was the best-selling BMW M model worldwide in 2022. In addition, a fully electric Performance model from BMW M GmbH will also be included in the new BMW 5 Series Sedan line-up.” If you know what we mean, this model should instead be considered a spiced-up i5 M50 than a hardcore i5M.

About the interior, the brand states the introduction of its newest OS edition for multimedia. Dubbed 8.5, this system does away with a physical iDrive, mimicking smartphone functionality more than ever.

It will feature a reconfigurable home screen, much like an iPhone, and fewer items to reduce distraction. The new edition will start rolling out as an over-the-air update on models featuring version 8.0 (i4, iX, X5, X6, and x7).

M5 as in XM

Though BMW talks mainly about the electric i5, the newest generation of the executive model sits on a flexible platform, still hosting conventional combustion engines. Even diesel is mentioned in the press release, although supported by mild hybrid technology from a 48-volt network.

As for gasoline, we expect to see the return of the plug-in hybrid 530e (featuring the four-cylinder engine), the 530i with mild hybrid technology, and the 540i still featuring the inline-six. Though performance brand M is getting its hands on the all-electric i5, an M5 with a V8 is still in the planning.

The topliner will be equipped with a pluggable driveline from the XM. It is rumored that output will peak at 735 hp (more than the 653 hp in the big SUV) guided by not one but four electric motors assisting the eight-cylinder. There will also be a ‘softer’ M performance model.