The 6th generation batteries are slated to arrive in 2025.
If BMW wanted to, they could drag even more range out of these batteries.
The EV range debate is about to end for good. BMW, and a few other automakers, are preparing to launch batteries that will enable an EV to travel 1,000 km between charges. Such a range is nearly unheard of for any ICE-powered vehicle, including diesels, so range anxiety is dead.
2022 BMW i4 M50 xDrive | Photo: Olivier Delorme
The next point that could be brought up is charging times. BMW’s new technology also addresses this as DC rapid-charging times will drop by roughly 30% over the old batteries as they’ll be capable of 270kW charging speeds. That leaves charging infrastructures…
Thomas Albrecht, BMW’s head of Efficient Dynamics, told Autocar: “Gen6 batteries will give us 30% or more range than our current Gen5, but we won’t go over 1000km [620 miles] of range, even though we can. We don’t think that such a long-range is necessary.”
The new battery packs could be as much as 20% lighter than Gen5 units improving overall efficiency. The new cells will be cylindrical (like Tesla’s) and use a unique BMW chemistry with less cobalt but more nickel. They will be Chinese-built but BMW has plans for new battery plants in Canada, Mexico, and the US, among other countries, in order to meet demand and requirements for incentives.
