What was supposed to be larger than life reveal of the much-awaited battery-electric sedan BMW at the grand Geneva Auto Show, has now succumbed to the global pandemic. The merrily leading brand of 2020 took a bold step of an online reveal for its new baby- BMW i4.
The actual car will hit the roads and go into production by 2021, provided the world situation gets better.
In the over-proliferating Sedan market, i4 will mark the first brick to move ahead into the electric car future for BMW. As per the folks in BMW, i4 is one of its kind electric sedans that will compete the already existing beast- Tesla Model 3 in the market.
BMW as an automaker company is known for its sensationalism combined with functionality in its cars. But this time, as the automaker claims, i4 has been meticulously curated and designed with an avant-garde blend of spaciousness, sportiness, and functionality, similar to that of a Gran Coupe.
The company is taking a leap of faith towards the dynamic excellence and electric future with this newly revealed i4.
Since the car does not go on production until 2021, we are still waiting for more comprehensive and intricate details about the car.
But here’s a first reveal review of i4 in terms of design, interiors, the claimed performance and other specifications for the customers to ponder:
Design
On the looks front, i4 has a lot going on. BMW never disappoints when it comes to their aesthetics and artfulness of automotive designs. The car comes with an overall glass roof that begins from the front windshield and goes all the way to the rear one.
The all-glass roof seems too good (and safe) to be true in all its practicality. There would still be a panoramic sunroof over the head even if not the all-glass roof in the ready version next year.
The showstopper sits inside the cabin- a huge vertically stacked curved screen which comprises of an instrument cluster and a touchscreen infotainment system.
The iconic kidney grille of BMW is very much intact in this model as well. But the makers have tweaked this grill a bit, making it stand vertical and appear more elongated.
As stated before, the vehicle carries the design of a coupe with a four-door design and the best in class futuristic layout. There’s an extra but measured exuberance in terms of the LED lights of the vehicle.
It carries the iconic design of the previous BMW lineup. There lies an air intake, which according to us is smartly placed to serve the dual purpose of cooling down the motor and also for aerodynamics.
From the looks of it, BMW i4 translates to be a pretty sharp looking and if we may say, a gorgeous vehicle with all the iconic BMW traces and classified tweaks for a new face.
Interior
BMW has managed to be individualistic and ergonomic for their interiors. The design bends towards sustainable materials like microfiber, natural leather, fabric, and more for the interiors.
The screen or the digital gauge cluster comb also controls almost all the vehicle functions including infotainment, navigation, and heating.
Even though BMW has lavished the interiors inspired by General Coupe, they have not forgotten their pragmatic trademark rotary control dial and have also re-trimmed their crystal glasses.
The newest addition of the Curved display is an innovative step by BMW going with the design that is ahead of its time and will be implemented not just in i4 but also in Inext. The display also combines well with the steering wheel and showcases a new essence on driver orientation.
The added note reflective glass and the advanced display touch dismisses the need for a shroud to blanket the displays and thus contribute to an uncluttered virtual cockpit.
Performance
BMW claims that i4 will step into the market with a single dominant electric motor that can churn out over 537 horsepower. This over the top power can accelerate the car from 0 to 100 km per hour in just about 4 seconds with a high-speed range of 200 km per hour.
Coupled with an 80 kWh battery, i4 is a powerhouse that will give Tesla’s powertrain a tough competition. You can charge up to 80 percent in over 30 to 40 minutes.
Once it is fully charged, BMW i4 has the estimated range of 270 miles and a WLTP range of 373 miles.
There are two different powerful battery packs in the car to juice up the electric motor which is 60-kWh and 80-kWh respectively. BMW i4 also comes with a standard with rear-wheel drive and the all-wheel-drive option stands to be optional.
We love the sound of all the claims made by the company in terms of performance. The customers have to wait for the first-hand experience though and rely on their word for the performance. But, with a legacy so strong, BMW never underestimates the power of their vehicle’s power.
BMW i4: specifications
Giving in to the sophistication and the ease of driving, BMW i4 is coupled with three display modes for their infotainment system: Core, Sport and Efficient.
The “Core” model is a modified version for the classic four widget display system found on all the current standard BMW products. The driver will now be able to navigate the widgets using a swipe movement by arranging them spontaneously using the drag and drop method.
The “Sports” mode lights up the cabin in red and moves all the gauge cluster’s widget closer to each other. This is mostly used to enhance the anticipatory driving to create a focused view for the driver.
All the sideways movements are now used to show how tight and close the next corner in. This mode provides a comfortable peripheral view for the driver.
Lastly, but the most effective “Efficient” mode introduces the new “Assisted driving view” concept for BMW. This mode enables the driver to see what the sensors of the car are detecting.
This mode ensures the anticipatory driving by helping the driver communicate with its surroundings. The right side of the area of the display showcases the additional vehicle information like the range and the charge level for better assistance.
The success of the BMW i4 in the automobile industry is imperative for the company in the market. Since it is their first-ever launch in the all-electric car’s lineup. By the looks of it, i4 is all set to give tough competition to the present four-door coupe body style vehicles present in the market.
The overall design, the interior, and the claimed performance look quite promising and the brand new additions of the assisted driving view angled LED headlights, vertical kidney grille, and touchscreen infotainment feature are sure to work out positively for the brand, or so we like it believe.
