Fashions just like the i5 M60 and i7 M70 aren’t precise M vehicles. They’re one step under by being a part of the M Efficiency lineup. Assume M240i or M340i, however, with electrical drivetrains as a substitute for combustion engines. We’ll have to wait till later this decade for a full-fat M mannequin. Nonetheless, growth began a number of years in the past with prototypes based mostly on the i4 M50, the best-selling automotive from BMW M in 2022 and 2023.

A surprisingly prolonged video goes behind the scenes throughout the growth and testing of electrical M prototypes. About two and a half minutes into the video, the Head of General Automobile Improvement BMW M shares a juicy tidbit. In line with Carsten Wolf, M electrical vehicles will all rock 4 motors sooner or later. He hypes up the quad-motor setup by saying it will ship “unprecedented efficiency, high quality, and options you can’t even think about immediately.”

The prototype featured within the video is more than simply an i4 M50 with a colourful wrap and the M3’s placing kidney grille. Along with having 4 electrical motors, it additionally options carbon-ceramic brakes, a strengthened physique for additional stiffness, and new subframes at each axle. After all, there are in all probability many different adjustments beneath the acquainted pores and skin; however, these are the ones BMW talks about.

We notably respect how BMW stays sincere by admitting that testing does not at all times go as deliberate. On the 5:50 mark, an X7 pulls subsequent to the i4 M50 to jump-start the useless EV. In line with Wolf, the engineers had modified the AC compressor to unravel an undisclosed downside; however, that did not do the trick. The subsequent step was to vary the entrance motors and get the automotive again on the take a look at observe.

BMW was apparently racing to get the prototype prepared for the board’s higher-ups to drive the quad-motor i4 M50. We’ll discover out what they mentioned in a subsequent video; however, they’re seemingly happy with the end result, contemplating M boss Frank van Meel has already confirmed an M3-like electrical sedan. That tells us that the manager workforce has permitted a manufacturing mannequin, which might land in 2027 or 2028.

However, the inline-six M3 is not going wherever. A next-gen sports sedan with a fuel engine can be deliberate. It reportedly carries the “G84” codename and is rumored to enter manufacturing in mid-2028, probably solely with an automated transmission and all-wheel drive.