The BMW Group is entering the financial year 2025 with a clear commitment to growth.

 

At the end of this year, the first production model of the NEUE KLASSE, the new BMW iX3, will kick off an unprecedented ramp-up of new models: Across all drivetrain variants and all segments, the BMW Group will release more than 40 new and updated vehicles onto the market by 2027.  

 

"What these new models have in common is that they will be equipped with future technology clusters, which will be rolled out successively across the entire portfolio with the launch of the NEUE KLASSE," said  said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG.  

 

“We are taking a huge leap forward with our new technology clusters – achieving maximum scalability, increasing the level of innovation and enhancing customer benefits. We do not differentiate between segments or drivetrain technologies – we provide every customer with the latest technology,” said Zipse.

 

“What has always set the BMW Group apart is our ability to maintain our course, even in challenging conditions. We remain clearly focused on two things – our near term performance and our long-term perspective,” said Zipse. 

 

“With the NEUE KLASSE, we are implementing the biggest future-focused project in the history of our company, while at the same time achieving a robust free cash flow.”

 

Consistent implementation of strategy 

The BMW Group made extensive investments in innovative technologies, its model line-up and manufacturing footprint worldwide in 2024. There will be a decrease in expenditure this year, from the planned peak in R&D spending and capital expenditure last year. On this basis, the company is aiming for a profit before taxes at the previous year’s level – despite increased tariffs, the statement said. 

 

“Never before in the history of BMW have we invested so extensively in our future. Investment reached its highest level in 2024, as planned. This underlines the durability of our strategy – and how consistently we are implementing it,” said Walter Mertl, member of the Board of Management, Finance. 

 

Technology openness as strategic success factor in global competition 

The diversity of its product range remains a key success factor for the BMW Group: The company is well positioned to meet globally diverse requirements and customer needs – both today and in the future – with a broad drivetrain portfolio spanning internal combustion engines, plug-in hybrids, battery-electric drive trains and, starting in 2028, also fuel-cell electric vehicles powered by hydrogen, it said.

 

Highly efficient internal combustion engines, which remain in high demand worldwide, will continue to play a key role. Last year alone, the company released more than 15 new or updated models with internal combustion engines onto the roads. All engines have been approved for higher percentages of renewable fuels for years. Fuels with lower CO2 content are the most effective way to reduce the carbon footprint of the existing fleet of over 250 million vehicles in Europe alone, making a valuable contribution to the transport sector’s efforts in the fight against climate change, the compnay said. 

 

Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) remain the BMW Group’s main growth driver. The company’s broad all-electric offer comprises more than 15 models across all brands. This means the BMW Group has a fully-electric offer in all its main segments. In 2024, the BMW Group significantly increased its total BEV sales worldwide to 426,536 units (+13.5%), representing a sales share of more than 17%. At MINI, about one in four vehicles is fully-electric; at Rolls-Royce, it is already one in three. 

 

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) also remain an essential element of the BMW Group’s technology-open approach and electrification of its model range: State-of-the-art BMW PHEV models enable an all-electric range of over 100 kilometres, thus making it relevant for a large proportion of typical driving situations and also making a substantial contribution to CO 2 reduction. In total, the BMW Group delivered nearly 600,000 electrified vehicles including plug-in hybrids (PHEVs and BEVs) to customers in 2024. This means almost one in four vehicles sold was electrified, it said. 

 

Electrified deliveries reach new all-time high 

The company will reach two major milestones in 2025: first, three million electrified vehicles on the roads since the launch of the BMW i3 and BMW i8 and, second, 1.5 million fully-electric vehicles delivered to cus-tomers.

 

First hydrogen production vehicle to be released in 2028 

In 2028, the BMW Group will become the first premium manufacturer worldwide to release a series production fuel-cell vehicle, offering its customers another emission free drivetrain option. To this end, the BMW Group is deepening its cooperation with Toyota Motor Corporation: Both partners will jointly develop the drive system for passenger cars, which will then be used in a brand-specific way in the two manufacturers’ respective models. The planned BMW vehicle will fit seamlessly into the brand’s portfolio, where it will be available alongside other drive train options, the company said.

 

NEUE KLASSE is laying the foundation  

Series production of the NEUE KLASSE will get underway in late 2025. The first production vehicle of this new generation of BMW models will have the model name BMW iX3. Series production of this SAV model, which was foreshadowed by the BMW Vision Neue Klasse X last year, will begin late this year at Plant Debrecen – the first plant in the BMW Group production network to exclusively build fully-electric vehicles. Since late 2024, the plant has been producing pre-series vehicles for testing. 

 

The BMW iX3 kicks off an unprecedented model ramp-up up to 2027: The launches of more than 40 models of all drivetrain variants will follow in quick succession; including a sporty sedan that is core to the BMW brand, which will be launched in 2026.

 

With the series launch of the BMW iX3, the new technology clusters will also be integrated throughout the entire BMW product line-up based on the established modularity principle. 

 

Digital nervous system for “Software-Defined Vehicle” 

For the next stage in its customer and driving experience, the BMW Group has completely redesigned the components, functionality and connectivity its “Software Defined Vehicle”. The result is an entirely restructured digital nervous system – consisting of a new electrical system with zonal architecture, a refined software architecture and four “super-brains”. These high-performance computers cluster the computing power for key customer functionality around infotainment, automated driving, driving dynamics and basic functions, such as vehicle access, air conditioning and comfort. In this way, the BMW Group is centralising and significantly reducing the number of electronic control units, while simultaneously providing well over 20 times more in-car computing power in the vehicle. This already ensures that the electronic control units will also be capable of accommodating future software and function updates, including AI features. 

 

The zonal architecture comprising four zones, will substantially increase the vehicle's efficiency: On the one hand, this radically simplifies the electrical system – 600 metres less wiring also reduces weight by 30%. On the other hand, the use of “smart eFuses” allows unnecessary energy consumption to be deactivated in certain situations, such as when the vehicle is parked or charging. Developers are working on well over 1,000 software modules with more than 500 million lines of code to further enhance the software architecture of the new digital “nervous system”. 

 

Overall, the redesign of the electronics architecture enables a quantum leap in performance, integration capability and efficiency. New innovations can be relayed much faster to the vehicle through over-the-air upgrades, ensuring the car remains up to-date – even when the next vehicle generation is already on the market. Over the course of the year, the BMW Group targets to increase the number of “over the air update” capable vehicles on the roads to over ten million.

 

Next-level driving experience 

Ten times faster than previous systems, developed entirely in-house and delivering maximum integration – with the “Heart of Joy” and new “BMW Dynamic Performance Control”, the BMW Group is set to achieve a quantum leap in driving experience: For the first time, the new highly integrated control unit – that will be used in every fully electric BMW in the future – combines drivetrain and driving dynamics functions. Integrated control of the drive train, braking and recuperation takes efficiency to the next level: In 98% of driving situations, the conventional brake does not need to intervene – the recuperation braking power is sufficient. As a result, the “Heart of Joy” increases overall efficiency by up to 25%, BMW said. 

 

The performance capabilities and potential of the “Heart of Joy” are showcased in the BMW Vision Driving Experience. In this new high-performance test vehicle, the functionality of the electronic control unit is tested under extreme conditions: The Vision Vehicle develops a torque of up to 18,000 Nm. The logic behind this: If the system can handle such a powerful high-performance vehicle, it will also be capable of managing the requirements of future production models. The BMW Vision Driving Experience will showcase the capabilities of the “Heart of Joy” in April at the Auto Shanghai 2025.

 

Focus on driver orientation: The new BMW Panoramic iDrive 

More than 20 years ago, the BMW Group set the benchmark for driver orientation and intuitive operability with its iDrive system. Starting in the new BMW iX3, the company is taking the next step by launching a completely new display and a new highly intelligent operating system. The clear objective is to reinterpret the brand’s hallmark “hands on the wheel, eyes on the road” approach and develop it into the future. 

 

With “BMW Panoramic iDrive”, the central interface for driver-vehicle interaction is being totally redesigned. At the heart of this new system is BMW Panoramic Vision – a completely newly-developed concept that projects content across the full width of the windscreen. It is rounded off by three other new components: the BMW 3D head-up display, the central display and the multifunction steering wheel. The entire system is operated either by touch or voice control via BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant, which is taken to a new level through a Large Language Model (LLM). 

 

The intelligent backbone of the new Panoramic iDrive is formed by the new BMW Operating System X, which was developed entirely in-house and is based on an Android Open Source Project (AOSP) software stack, delivering significant update and upgrade capabilities. The new operating system enables optimal coordination and distribution of content in the vehicle across Panoramic iDrive’s four elements. At the same time, it offers customers maximum personalisation and customisation, tailored to their individual preferences and needs.

 

Sixth-generation BMW eDrive technology 

The BMW Group is launching the sixth generation of its eDrive technology in the electric models of the NEUE KLASSE. The system comprises three significantly enhanced components: the high-voltage battery, the electric motor and the “BMW Energy Master”: The latter operates as the control unit for the entire electric drive system, has been developed completely in-house and will be manufactured in the BMW Group Plant in Landshut. 

 

In the future, the BMW Group will use round cells and an 800-volt system for its high voltage battery. This combination heralds a major breakthrough at both cell and vehicle levels: 20% higher energy density, 30% faster charging and at least 30% more range. The round cells are integrated and wired directly into the battery housing. With this new concept, the BMW Group is aiming to reduce costs for the high voltage battery by 40 to 50 percent. 

 

For its e-drive, the BMW Group relies on a highly flexible and scalable modular system. The basis for this is provided by DC-excited Synchronous Motors (SSMs) that are developed and produced in-house. Vehicles with xDrive come with the option of Asynchronous Motors (ASMs) installed on the front axle, reducing energy loss by 40% and weight by 10%. In the future, customers will be able to choose between models with one, two, three or four electric motors. -TradeArabia News Service