James Pero

Tech

BMW’s next-gen electric i4 sedan is coming soon

The automotive giant’s upcoming i4 EV will include a potent M variant.

BMW’s taken the wraps off its new electric i4.

In an official announcement this week BMW revealed full specs on not one, but two versions of its upcoming electric i4 sedan, which coupled with the iX SUV, comprise the first round of a new generation of EVs from the company.

i4 eDrive40

The eDrive 40 will represent the standard end of the i4 spectrum and comes with 335 horsepower, rear-wheel drive, 300 miles of range, and can go from 0-60 mph in just under six seconds.

$55,400

The starting price of the eDrive40.

i4 M50

A beefed-up version of the i4, the M50, will come with 536 horsepower, all-wheel drive, 240 miles of range, and go from 0-60 mph in about four seconds.

$65,900

The more powerful M50 variant will have an understandably heftier starting price.

BMW says the i4 sedan will have a battery cell that’s 40 percent denser than the i3 and will be capable of charging from 10 to 80 percent in just over 30 minutes.

The i4 interior will feature a curved information display — the same one slated for the iX — that angles toward the driver and merges with the control display to form one seamless glass piece. BMW’s iDrive 8 will power the car on the software side, and underlying that is an onboard computer that BMW claims will process 20 to 30 times more data than previous models.

Love it or hate it, the oversized kidney grille is here too.

While the i4 will compete with the Tesla Model S on price point, it will stop short of what most would consider truly autonomous driving. Instead, the i4 will come with several features that flirt with future self-driving, including...

- Lane assist

- Automated emergency brakes

- Automatic speed adjust when turning

- Adaptive cruise control

If you’re excited to test out or buy an i4 you’ll have to wait a little while. BMW says it expects the EV to go on sale starting in 2022 — and it won’t be without competition. Mercedes, Audi, and Jaguar all have their own EV sedans in the works.

2022

BMW says the i4 will be available in the first quarter of 2022.

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