Electric, highly automated and fully networked: with the Vision iNext, BMW is offering a glimpse of its new technology flagship. The series model is slated for launch on the market in 2021.
The BMW Vision iNext shows what BMW's electric future should look like.
BMW
BMW has offered a first glimpse of its vehicle for the next decade. The BMW Vision iNext is electrically powered, highly automated and fully networked. The production model will be built at the company's plant in Dingolfing, Bavaria, and is scheduled for launch on the market in 2021. BMW has, however, not yet released any technical data concerning the iNext.
BMW sees the iNext as the logical development of a concept that began with "project i" in 2007 and evolved into the market launch of the BMW i3 in 2013. The next step will be the complete in-car integration of the strategic innovation fields autonomy, connectivity, electrification and services (ACES). "The iNext project will provide our building blocks for the future, from which the entire company and all of its brands are set to benefit," says Harald Krüger, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW.
Opposing doors
The large, interlinked double-kidney grille, the iconic side window graphic, and the blue accent surfaces at the front, sides and rear instantly express the BMW i styling that already featured on the BMW i Vision Dynamics presented in 2017. The two large doors open in opposite directions without a B-pillar separating them. Cameras replace wing mirrors, while proximity- and touch-sensitive sensors work as door openers.
The large panorama roof floods the interior with light. Two single seats in the front and a one-piece bench in the rear offer space for up to four people. A few, clean-cut lines define the interior, while the geometry emphasises the materials and colours. In Boost mode, the driver can drive the BMW Vision iNext but in Ease mode the car drives itself.
No screens or controls
Inside the cockpit, the driver’s area is defined by only two visible digital display panels and the steering wheel. In Boost mode, the steering wheel and displays are positioned towards the driver. When Ease mode is engaged, the driver’s immediate environment changes: the steering wheel and accelerator pedal retract slightly, creating a more open sense of space.
The display panels switch from driving-related content to Exploration mode, which provides the driver and passengers with suggestions of nearby places and events of interest to them. In addition, the front seat head restraints can be folded back, allowing the people in the front to communicate more effectively with the passengers in the rear.
Apart from the steering wheel and displays in the driver's area, the BMW Vision iNext has no other screens or controls that can be seen. They become visible and operable only when the driver or passenger requests this. The vehicle’s Intelligent Personal Assistant switches on in response to the prompt "Hey BMW". While the driver can operate the Control Display in Boost mode conventionally using touch functionality, in Ease mode the centre console's wooden surface assumes this control function. The Intelligent Beam technology serves as both a reading light and a dynamic and interactive projection surface. This enables, for instance, the text in a printed book to be supplemented by images, moving content and interactive graphics, all of which can be controlled by touch.
Production will begin in 2021
The BMW iNext vehicle project will play a key role in the development of the tool kits and components required in the future. Looking ahead, BMW can use the new vehicle architectures for all front-wheel, rear-wheel and all-wheel drive configurations. In addition, its modern plants will allow BMW to quickly decide which and how many models should be equipped with an all-electric drive, a plug-in hybrid drive system or a combustion engine.
In 2025, BMW is aiming to offer 25 models with electrified drive systems, 12 of which will be purely electric. Production of the all-electric mini model will begin in 2019, while the production vehicle of the all-electric BMW Concept iX3 will follow in 2020. BMW has promised a serial version of the iNext for 2021.