BMW i4 specs and pictures: Munich's next EV in detail

• BMW i4 electric car spied
• Inspired by i Vision Dynamics
• Tesla Model 3 rival due 2021

We've snapped the new BMW i4 several times testing – but now Munich has released more official information about its forthcoming EV. In an announcement today, BMW confirmed the new car will have 390kW – making it a match for the brand's own V8 powerplant.

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The i4's 390kW system will be powered by an 80kWh, 550kg battery unit, which should get the car 373 miles between charges. And when you do need to top-up, 150kW charging capability should mean you should get 80% of that range within just 35 minutes – or 100 kilometres in six minutes.

What is the new BMW i4?

Coming in 2021, the i4 will slot in between the i3 and i8 in BMW's burgeoning electric car range, and will be aimed directly between the Model 3 and Model S electric cars.

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As well as issuing its own 'official spyshots', BMW has confirmed some new details about the i4:

• It's a 'four-door coupe positioned in the premium mid-range segment'
• 'Combines a dynamic design with inspiring performance and a high level of ride comfort'
• 'Fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology'
• 0-100km/h in 4.0 seconds
• Top speed 'over 200 kph'
• Will be built in Munich at a BMW factory

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The i4 looks a lot like a standard 4-series Gran Coupe, though it appears to ride a little higher – probably due to battery packaging. While we expect much of the design to remain the same, we do think BMW will do something more unusual with the car’s grille; after all the i4 won’t need cooling inlets like a conventional internal combustion car.

Instead, expect the ‘conjoined-kidney’ or ‘mini-dumbbell’ grille as seen on the BMW i Vision Dynamics concept car to feature.

Once you strip away the disguise, insiders promise the i4 will keep the BMW i vibe alive and kicking, even if the proportions look remarkably traditional. That's what packaging four adults and luggage does to a design.

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The sleek, low-slung i Vision Dynamics concept from 2017 was a four-door 4-series Gran Coupe-style family car previewing the third i model. BMW said it was capable of 0-62mph in four seconds, a top speed of 193km/h and an electric, zero-emissions range of up to 600 kilometres - figures we'd wager sound remarkably feasible for a production EV two years away from showrooms.

It is unclear at this stage whether the new BMW i4 will be built around the group's CLAR architecture or a separate platform; we know that the batteries are accommodated along the floor within the wheelbase, which explains the slightly raised ride height visible in these spy photos. The cells are mounted low for better handling, and the body is lifted to maintain decent accommodation.

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This won't be a bespoke carbonfibre chassis, as with the i3 and i8; instead expect a sprinkling of lightweight aluminium and maybe a CFRP roof, like on an M4, to slice out weight but keep a lid on costs.

Shorn of the disguise adorning this camouflaged prototype, insiders hint that the production version will keep a distinct i family face, with unique kidney grilles and the door handles are said to be touch-operated, rather than manual affairs. The concept had flush door handles too.

Note also the faked exhaust pipes built into the camo at the rear, to put our spy photographers off the scent. Although this is rather undone by the 'Electric vehicle' stickers required by law in Germany in case of a high-voltage accident!

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The tech specs

The production-spec i4 saloon will use two electric motors, all-wheel drive and torque vectoring. There’s also potential for rear-wheel steering and semi-active air suspension. It’s likely that BMW will follow Tesla’s lead in offering different versions with a choice of power outputs. This car is aimed squarely at the Tesla Model 3, after all...

In fact, the hotter version could even carry an M performance division badge. ‘The i Vision Dynamics is a car with a broad remit, so I think that will be the time when we see certain blends of BMW i and M’, said Dick Arnold, head of product management at BMW i. ‘Now we have M with a clear picture and we have BMW i with its electrification. Over the years there will certainly be an overlap – no doubt about it.’

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Robert Irlinger, head of the BMW i division told us: ‘There will be M cars with kinds of electrification in the future. Is there a clash between the i and M brands? Of course not. There will be a blend, or some co-operation in future, because electrification brings benefits – full torque from the beginning, for example.’

Sounds great! When can I buy the BMW i4?

Arnold pointed to the i3 and i8 timeframe for a rough idea: the EfficientDynamics Vision concept from 2011 ended up being the i8 in less than three years. On that basis, a customer-ready i Vision Dynamics could be in showrooms as early as 2020, explaining our new spy photos of a prototype on a transporter.

The i Vision Dynamics is far from the only electric BMW in the pipeline. As part of the group’s plan to provide 25 electrified cars by 2025, with 12 being fully electric, BMW i has a lot on its plate over the next eight years. ‘It’s sometimes smart not to talk too much about your future plans’, says Arnold, but we have a pretty good idea. An electric Mini hatch is already set to be built in Oxford for 2019. An electric X3 SUV will follow a year later.

This article first appeared on www.carmagazine.co.uk