Wireless charging could very well prove to be the way of the future for electric vehicles and BMW has just shown its technology in action.
Available as an option for the BMW 530e iPerformance, BMW’s Wireless Charging system consists of a base pad with an integrated primary coil that can be installed in a garage or in a suitable location outside. There’s also a secondary coil integrated into the underside of the vehicle with the alternating magnetic field between the two offering a charge rate of up to 3.2 kW.
In perfect conditions, the 530e’s battery pack can be charged in a respectable 3.5 hours through the wireless charging pad.
However, it’s worth noting that the hybrid 5-Series only has a small 9.2-kWh battery pack, minuscule compared to the battery packs used by all-electric vehicles currently on the market. Nevertheless, the 3.5-hour charge time is half the time required by a 120-volt outlet.
Powering the BMW 530e iPerformance is a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine paired with an electric motor for a total of 248 hp and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque. This grunt results in a 0-60 mph (96 km/h) time of 6.1 seconds and a 130 mph (209 km/h) top speed.