BMW’s next-gen sport sedan lineup is about to separate fans in two. In simply over a 12 months, we’ll see one thing we by no means thought we’d say once more: a brand-new BMW i3 (if we exclude the China-only i3 Sedan). Solely this time, it’s not a unusual carbon-bodied hatchback — it’s a full-blown sport sedan constructed on the Neue Klasse platform. And whereas BMW’s next-generation G50 3 Sequence , and its prime mannequin M350, will carry the torch for the straight-six trustworthy, I can’t assist however really feel the electrical i3 M60 is likely to be the one to outline the place the model is headed subsequent.
Nonetheless, this isn’t a easy “EV good, ICE dangerous” debate. Each automobiles characterize two sides of BMW’s soul — and selecting between them gained’t be simple. For some individuals.
The Case for the i3 M60: Pace, Silence, and Smarts
Let’s begin with the brand new child. The rumored i3 M60 (BMW has but to verify its M Efficiency EV) isn’t simply one other electrical sedan with a roundel on the hood — it’s the primary of BMW’s Neue Klasse sedans, the identical structure that’ll underpin every thing from the iX3 to the longer term M3 EV. Meaning this isn’t a versatile platform; it’s BMW engineering electrification from the bottom up which has loads of advantages.
Energy? Assume not less than 600 horsepower from twin motors. That’s comfortably greater than the rumored 415 hp anticipated from the M350, and certain sufficient to make the i3 one of many quickest non-M automobiles BMW has ever constructed. Vary estimates go as excessive as 900 km (559 miles) on the WLTP cycle, due to BMW’s new Gen6 cells, which additionally reduce charging occasions dramatically — round 370 km (230 miles) WLTP added in simply ten minutes at 400 kW.
In brief, it’s the sort of efficiency that doesn’t simply beat the M350 — it blows previous it.
However numbers solely inform half the story. What actually issues right here is the Neue Klasse platform and BMW’s Coronary heart of Pleasure supercomputer — the system that fuses powertrain, chassis, and steering into one predictive management mind. Having pushed the iX3 prototype with that setup, I can inform you: it feels extra pure, extra related, and extra… BMW than any EV they’ve constructed earlier than.
Within the i3 sedan, decrease weight, higher stability, and prompt torque may make it sharper and extra responsive than the M350 — an irony, contemplating the electrical one may even be the heavier automotive.
Greater Inside Area
After which there’s practicality. The i3’s packaging benefit over CLAR-based fashions might be apparent the second you step inside — flat flooring, higher rear area, and even a frunk for good measure. It’s the simpler day by day driver: no chilly begins, no gas stops, no guilt creeping by means of site visitors. For brief journeys and metropolis commutes, the i3 merely is smart.
Nonetheless, the silence that makes it so refined additionally may make it… much less alive. That’s the place the M350 fights again.
The Case for the M350: Emotion By no means Dies
The M350 could possibly be the tip of an period (despite the fact that that’s nonetheless up within the air with regulators) — a correct send-off for the interior combustion 3 Sequence. Beneath the hood lives the B58, arguably one of many most interesting engines BMW has ever constructed. Easy, highly effective, and dependable, it’ll push out round 415 horsepower and 580 Nm of torque, paired with BMW’s acquainted ZF eight-speed computerized. No plug, no ready — simply press begin and go.
And sure, it ought to nonetheless sounds implausible. BMW’s determination to provide it quad exhausts and M-inspired styling tells you precisely who this automotive is for. It’s for the one that values sound, really feel, and mechanical connection greater than lap occasions or kilowatts. It’ll seemingly weigh lower than the i3, making it extra playful and keen in corners. If the i3 guarantees tech precision, the M350 could possibly be analog pleasure.
After all, that comes with trade-offs. The M350 will drink extra gas, value extra to run, and perhaps it gained’t be welcome in each metropolis middle 5 years from now. Inside, it’ll most likely really feel tighter and fewer ethereal than the Neue Klasse i3. However there’s nonetheless one thing inherently satisfying about firing up a straight-six and listening to it come alive — one thing that no EV, regardless of how fast, can exchange.
Two Sides of BMW’s DNA
So which might I purchase?
Actually, most likely the i3 M60. It’s the sort of automotive that represents every thing BMW has realized previously decade — precision engineering, know-how that feels invisible, and efficiency that borders on absurd. It needs to be very quick, easy to drive, and eventually, an EV with a really distinctive styling as nicely.
However the M350 speaks to a special a part of me — the one that also thinks a BMW ought to make noise, shift gears, and really feel alive underneath load. It’ll most likely be the extra emotional automotive, and for a lot of, that alone will make it the suitable selection.
Both means, BMW wins — as a result of each show that driving pleasure may are available in many types.
