BMW Boss Hints At i5 Full Electric Sedan

Harald Krueger, CEO of BMW, has admitted to a German publication that there is space in their line-up to include a new ‘i’ vehicle, adding to the current pair: the i3 electric small town car and the i8 plug-in hybrid sports car. 

He told Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung that it there is room and enough interest in the i-badge to slot in a new model between the i3 and i8, but declined to delve into further specifics: "There is space if you look at it from the number point of view," he said.

Some sources have reported to be pointing to a mid-size saloon that could be somewhat similar to the BMW 5-Series, tentatively called the i5. They said that, should the car come into production, it would be offered as a plug-in hybrid or as an all-electric model that could go against the Tesla Model S.

BMW’s alternative energy and hybrid technology divisions are pushing hard to solve the next step in powering the world’s next generation of vehicles, and a new, more commonplace sedan effort from them could expose the ‘i’ sub-brand to a much wider customer base.

Most recently, BMW was reported to have been in talks with Apple to collaborate on their own vehicle efforts, even going as far as to have Apple CEO Tim Cook visit their plant in Leipzig, where the i3 is manufactured.