BMW’s M division expects sales of its battery-electric vehicles to soar throughout the rest of the decade and eventually, overtake combustion vehicle sales by 2028.
There are currently only two EVs under the BMW M brand, namely the i4 M50 and iX M60. The new i7 M70 and i5 M60 models are scheduled to launch this year and BMW M is also working on a second, more powerful M version of the i4 featuring four electric motors instead of two like the current i4 M50.
Read: BMW M Working On Quad-Motor EV Prototype Wearing An M3 Face
While speaking about the growth of its EV models at the press launch of the new M2 and XM, BMW M boss Frank van Meel shared a graphic showing how the carmaker expects sales to progress through to 2030. The graphic shows that the proportion of plug-in hybrid and battery-electric vehicles will increase steadily over the coming years and by 2027, approximately 50 percent of M’s sales will come from electrified models. In 2028, the company expects that the number of combustion and PHEV models sold will decrease, and over half of M’s sales will consist of EVs.
In 2029 and 2030, the number of combustion and PHEV models shipped to customers will continue to fall while EV sales figures are expected to grow further, appearing to account for over 80 percent of total sales, Bimmer Today notes.
While one may think that BMW M could have a hard time selling EVs given its enthusiast focus, it recently revealed that the i4 M50 was its best-selling model last year, in which it sold 177,257 vehicles, the most in its history. Interest in M’s electric models will grow further when the company launches the aforementioned quad-motor sedan. Prototypes based on the i4 are already being tested and while details about it aren’t known, it is expected to deliver significantly more than the 536 hp mustered up by the i4 M50.
