What's all this about?

After a long while of BMW i having only two models, the electric i3 city car and the plug-in hybrid i8 sports car, now we know an all-new third variant is on the way. It's called the i4 and it has a challenging aesthetic, a bit like the current 4 Series family, but it should still be a decent electric saloon. That's because it has more power, at 530hp, than the incoming M3 and M4 machines (also similarly afflicted with BMW's devastating outbreak of unsightly nostrilitis), so the marque wants it to handle well, too.

Hang on, before we get onto that - why has it taken seven years for BMW i to expand?

We're not entirely sure, to be honest. Admittedly, there has recently been the waters-muddying iX3 EV SUV in recent months, but that classes as a 'mainstream' BMW with an i-badge, rather than a full BMW 'i'. Weirdly. Nevertheless, the i4 has to drive every bit as well as the company's products with internal combustion engines, so the marque has lifted the lid on final chassis development of the i4, ahead of its likely market release later this year.

Go on, then; any big developments?

Well, there are lots of shots of a heavily camouflaged model performing oversteer, which is nice. And it is said to have its own specific damper tuning to make sure that it will accelerate fast and true in a straight line if its owner decides to unleash all of the powertrain's punch - 0-62mph takes just 4.0 seconds - so that it imbues a feeling of security in its driver. Furthermore, BMW claims its torsional rigidity is high and that it gives the impression of 'effortlessly floating' when it is just cruising along at motorway speeds. However, it is not all about savage straight-line performance for BMW and so particular attention is being paid to the handling, too. Sounds promising.

David Alfredo Ferrufino Camacho, the project manager for the i4, said: "For the first time, we've developed a BMW with sporty DNA for purely electric driving entirely from scratch. The BMW i4 offers everything BMW stands for - and it's fully electric, too. Further, the i4 conveys the feeling of being light and agile yet also solid and authoritative. With its superior directional reliability and high level of cornering stability, it seems to literally attach itself to the road. All electric vehicles are capable of fast straight-line acceleration. But that's not enough for us at BMW."

Matt Robinson - 22 Jan 2020