BMW shows Neue Klasse M electric performance concept before Le Mans
BMW’s new M concept previews an electric performance platform, four-motor control system and design cues planned for future M vehicles.
By Hana Yoshida · Markets Reporter
2 min read
BMW has unveiled a new M performance concept based on its Neue Klasse electric-vehicle architecture, using the car to preview technology and styling planned for future high-performance models. The reveal, timed around Le Mans, signals how BMW’s M division is tying its racing identity to battery-electric hardware.
The automaker says the concept follows the idea “Born on the racetrack. Made for the streets.” BMW describes the car as a bridge between its motorsports history and its next generation of EV systems.
The concept is a two-door sedan with a vivid red finish. BMW’s design details include broad wheel arches, a strong shoulder line and a low, planted stance, all meant to introduce a new visual direction for M cars.
Four motors and a central control computer
BMW says the concept introduces its M eDrive system, developed from Neue Klasse Gen6 technology and tuned for high-performance electric vehicles. The setup uses four electric motors.
Those motors are managed by BMW’s Heart of Joy central computer, which the company says can control propulsion and braking at each wheel. BMW says that wheel-level control supports stronger energy recuperation, better traction and very direct responses from the drivetrain.
The concept uses an 800-volt electrical architecture and a 100kWh battery, according to BMW. The pack uses the company’s sixth-generation cylindrical cells, which BMW says are designed for high energy output and fast charging.
BMW also says the battery housing is built into the structure around both the front and rear axles. The company says that layout is intended to improve body stiffness and sharpen the car’s driving behavior.
New M lighting cues
The front of the concept keeps BMW’s familiar kidney-grille motif, but the grille is blended with the headlights. The result gives the nose a more pointed, shark-like look, according to the design details released by BMW.
The car also debuts M Yellow Lights, a lighting element BMW says draws from GT racing and its M Hybrid V8 program. BMW says those lights, along with three-dimensional Track Lights, will become identifiers on future M vehicles.
A large V-shaped opening in the hood provides cooling for the electric drivetrain, according to BMW. That detail underscores the company’s effort to present the concept as a performance EV rather than a design study with limited mechanical relevance.
BMW did not provide production timing, performance figures or pricing in the information released with the concept. The company is using the car primarily to show how Neue Klasse hardware may shape the next era of M vehicles.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.