[Mani59]

     Featured on BIMMERPOST.com

Damn shame in my opinon. I'm no fan of the i3 but at least it looks a bit different.

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...ic-car-styling

BMW to gradually tone down electric car styling
Future models don't need to stand out like existing i3 and i8, according to design boss

The styling of BMW’s electric cars will become more toned down over time, compared to the styling showcased by the current i range, according to the firm’s design director Adrian van Hooydonk.

Reasoning that the current i3 hatchback and i8 sports car needed to stand out from the petrol-powered competition, using their design to draw attention to their innovative powertrains, van Hooydonk added that, as electric powertrains enter the mainstream, so the design of the cars will also start to confirm to more established trends.

“Electric mobility will spread through our entire vehicle range in quite a short space of time - to the point that electric or plug-in hybrid is just another option box you tick as you order the car,” said van Hooydonk.

“The fact is that BMW customers want a dynamic car, whether it is a battery-electric vehicle or not, and so there’s is increasingly less reason to make these kinds of cars look different.”

However, van Hooydonk stressed that this did not spell the end of innovatively designed BMWs. “The i brand stands for inspiration and innovation, and electrification is not the only area of our industry that marks a significant change,” he said. “It’s pretty clear that there will still be i cars, and that the designers will be able to search for different things.”

This change in approach can already be seen in the iX3 SUV, which is set to become the next addition to the i range. The concept revealed at the Beijing Motor Show used a more mainstream design that takes inspiration from the standard X3. It will be followed by the i4 saloon in 2021, which is expected to use an adapted version of the next 4 Series platform.

Dramatic styling may be saved for the Vision iNext, an X5-sized SUV due the same year. The concept showed a significantly different kidney grille from anything BMW has used before.

[allinon72]

If the goal is for electric cars to go mainstream, they have to look like normal cars people want. Quirky designs such as the i3 appeal to a very small segment of the population.

[SteveinArizona]

I like the look of the I8 but I don't like the look of the I3. That is one of the reasons why I purchased a 530e. It looks like every other 5 series.

But different strokes for different folks.

[Chihuahua]

Originally Posted by SteveinArizona

I like the look of the I8 but I don't like the look of the I3. That is one of the reasons why I purchased a 530e. It looks like every other 5 series.

+1

Last year I had to buy a car. This car gets driven strictly in town, roughly 30 to 40 miles per day. a BEV i3 would work PERFECTLY for this, but I simply could not get past how hideous it is (nor could the S.O.), and we ended up with a pre-owned E90. BMW really screwed the pooch with the i3, they could have sold a lot more than they did in the US had they made it look remotely close to an actual car. It is Pontiac Aztek levels of atrocious.

[SteveinArizona]

The I3 is ugly but the Aztek is in an entirely different category. Plug ugly! I think the Aztek is probably what killed Pontiac!

[OUGrad05]

Originally Posted by allinon72

If the goal is for electric cars to go mainstream, they have to look like normal cars people want. Quirky designs such as the i3 appeal to a very small segment of the population.

Agreed 100%

[mkoesel]

Hopefully, the production i4 follows the Vision Dynamics Concept closely. It has a distinct appearance that is, for the most part, pleasing to the eye.

[tom @ eas]

Designs have been mentioned a couple of times in interviews:

https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/08/03/v...of-the-bmw-i3/
https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/10/11/i...mw-i-division/

We [BMWblog] also asked Irlinger about BMW i seemingly dropping some of its ambition. When the BMW i Division was first launched, it planned on making a single EV architecture and building several cars on it. Now, BMW is using a modular architecture to build all of its cars on, electric or otherwise. So we asked him about the future plans of the i Division and what it wants to do in terms of chassis and architecture.

First, he cleared the air a bit and told us that the i3 wasn’t built on a modular architecture to build multiple EVs on. Rather than that, the BMW i3 was a bit of a design and technology showcase for BMW to flex its electric muscles a bit.

[Domagoj Dukec] also explains that, while for some old-school fans of the brand the i3 doesn’t look right, it may appeal to other potential customers, which may have never noticed the brand otherwise. Therefore, if you want to win new customers you might have to rethink your strategy. One thing’s for sure though: no other electric car out there comes with a carbon fiber chassis, similar to the approach used on supercars and that makes the i3 noteworthy.

[ShocknAwe]

Why gradually.

[jmg]

As much as I love my i3 as a commuter, and I have grown to appreciate it's quirky looks, I think this is a step in the right direction. However I agree with the OP, I hope there is a bit more forward thinking in terms of design than just the 530e and the 330e, which are fine cars, but a bit boring imho.

The iX3 IMHO is okay, but still a bit too close to the X3. The i4 looks like a good blend of i innovation and mainstream design:



My i3:
20170805 - i3 Lower Grand - IMG_1116-Edit_100 by JMG, on Flickr

[CntryClub007]

Originally Posted by SteveinArizona

The I3 is ugly but the Aztek is in an entirely different category. Plug ugly! I think the Aztek is probably what killed Pontiac!

Haha - I mean...the picture says it all lol

[duky]

What is news here? We already have seen the iX3 concept, which is very close to a mainstream X3 design while we also saw the iNext concept, which continues along the path the i8 and i3 set out on. BMW clearly plans to do both: have some i cars with forward-thinking designs while others more closely mimic traditional design language

[JustChris]

This is good news.

[ttaayylloorr]

I love the i3 design. I think the interior is genuinely refreshing even years after release.

[unrulyteach]

Originally Posted by Chihuahua

+1

Last year I had to buy a car. This car gets driven strictly in town, roughly 30 to 40 miles per day. a BEV i3 would work PERFECTLY for this, but I simply could not get past how hideous it is (nor could the S.O.), and we ended up with a pre-owned E90. BMW really screwed the pooch with the i3, they could have sold a lot more than they did in the US had they made it look remotely close to an actual car. It is Pontiac Aztek levels of atrocious.

Great comparison

[mundo74]

Originally Posted by tom @ eas

Designs have been mentioned a couple of times in interviews:

https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/08/03/v...of-the-bmw-i3/
https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/10/11/i...mw-i-division/

Originally Posted by tom @ eas

Designs have been mentioned a couple of times in interviews:

https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/08/03/v...of-the-bmw-i3/
https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/10/11/i...mw-i-division/

hate to say it BMW but nobody cares about carbon fiber if it does not add to the experience. The bolt and Tesla all have tremendous range without carbon fiber. I bet 90% of i3 owners dont even know. only a few car geeks like myself would know or even care.

[dardeca]

Originally Posted by allinon72

If the goal is for electric cars to go mainstream, they have to look like normal cars people want. Quirky designs such as the i3 appeal to a very small segment of the population.

+1

[cc3]

Backward step making them look bland like the rest of the range. BMW mainstream styling is conservative even a bit boring these days

[bmw1racer]

The sooner the better. Those iNext cars are hideous design exercises.

[mose121]

Here's the thing. You may think the i3 is hideous, but in many countries it's by far the highest selling electrified vehicle. I don't think the U.S. market was really the target market for it from the start. They knew there were many factors at the time of its release that would limit sales in the U.S. Personally, I think it's cool as hell and I quite like the funky euro styling. And this is coming from someone that has been driving ///M cars for the past 15 years. But to each their own.

[cfm56d7b]

Very good news. I would be happy with an electric 4 series Gran Coupe if one were available.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

Very good news. I would be happy with an electric 4 series Gran Coupe if one were available.

That is essentially what the i4 is expected be - an electric G26 4 Series Gran Coupe.