BMW shows production i4 at conference

All-electric BMW i4 Gran Coupe looks like a smoother four-door 4 Series.

We've had teaser details of it before now, but this is our first full look at the BMW i4 Gran Coupe electric saloon that's inbound. It was revealed at BMW's Group Annual Conference for 2021.

Up to 590km

The i4, as the number in its name suggests, doesn't look hugely different from how you might imagine a four-door GC version of the combustion-powered 4 Series Coupe would appear, this continuing BMW's policy of making its full electric vehicles (EVs) like the iX3 appear as conventional as possible. Well, almost all its EVs, that is - we're not quite sure what the company was thinking when it 'styled' the iX SUV.

Anyway, aside from another of BMW's beloved set of highly contentious and simply enormous kidney 'grilles', it's quite a good-looking car, the i4. Smooth. Sleek. Quite proportional. We're not entirely convinced by the offset of the rear wheels at the moment, which seem to sit proud of the wheel arches, but otherwise it's a pretty decent piece of penmanship overall.

Beyond this, we know most of the rest of the details. BMW has already talked about the chassis tuning of the i4, saying that it 'simply going fast in a straight line is not enough' for the company. And we know it will kick off with models that can deliver up to 530hp and a 0-100km/h time of around 4.0 seconds, while other versions should be capable of up to 590km on a single charge. Perhaps the interesting news is that BMW has now said that the EV Gran Coupe will 'enter the market during the course of 2021, including a BMW M Performance model'. If that's not the 530hp derivative, we'd be interested to know more.

Anyway, Pieter Nota, member of the board of management of BMW AG responsible for Customer, Brands and Sales, said: "With its sporty looks, best in class driving dynamics and zero local emissions, the BMW i4 is a true BMW. It makes the heart of the BMW brand now beat fully electric."

Still want that BMW 3 Series

Published on: March 17, 2021