BMW ups R&D spend on new EV platforms and powertrains

BMW accrued its probe and improvement spending by 5.2% twelvemonth connected twelvemonth successful 2022 arsenic it made important steps towards launching its next-generation electrical line-up.

The company’s R&D concern past twelvemonth totalled €6.6 cardinal (£5.9bn), with funds going to the Neue Klasse programme.

This volition usher successful the adjacent epoch for BMW, bringing the electrification of the long-running 3 Series nameplate with a exemplary previewed by the i Vision Dee conception car.

The Neue Klasse models volition large connected exertion arsenic BMW aims to marque connected vehicles a cardinal pillar of its automotive business, controversially locking features installed into vehicles astatine the mill (such arsenic heated seats) down a subscription.

The institution confirmed successful its 2023 fiscal connection that it had accrued spending connected the improvement of the “digitalisation of the conveyance fleet” arsenic good arsenic autonomous driving. The one Vision Dee besides provided aboriginal penetration into aboriginal technologies that could beryllium lucrative, including an on-board artificial quality (AI) adjunct and augmented world projection onto the windscreen, mixing the virtual and existent worlds.

Under the skin, the Neue Klasse models volition besides present important guardant leaps successful artillery technology, with “high-voltage” sixth-generation cells boosting scope and charging velocity by up to 30%.

The cells volition beryllium assembled into afloat artillery packs astatine BMW’s works successful Debrecen, Hungary. The packs' capacity will beryllium either 75kWh oregon 150kWh, which hints at long-range capabilities for each models.

BMW’s existent epoch volition travel nearer to its end with the next-generation 5 Series – slated for an imminent uncover up of its motorboat aboriginal this twelvemonth – arsenic it transitions into becoming an electrical conveyance manufacturer. The Mercedes-Benz E-Class rival volition adhd an electrical exemplary to its ranks, rivalling the Mercedes-Benz EQE.

The enlargement of BMW’s battery-electric line-up comes arsenic portion of a wider propulsion for the steadfast to decarbonise its fleet, having much than doubled its BEV income to 215,755 successful 2022. It reported European fleet mean CO2 emissions of 105.0g/km, importantly beneath its authoritative people of 127.5g/km.

Such maturation helped the BMW Group to conscionable fiscal expectations successful 2022, signaling €10.6 cardinal (£9.4bn) successful nett (before involvement and taxes). Revenue roseate by 28.2% twelvemonth connected year, to astir €143bn (£127bn), bolstered by the integration of BMW’s Chinese associated venture, BMW Brilliance Automotive, into the main business.

This meant that, despite the uplift successful R&D spending, it represented a smaller ratio of BMW’s wide home merchandise compared with the twelvemonth prior, going from 6.2% successful 2021 to 5.0%.