BMW M Plans to Launch 30 New Models by 2030 – Report

BMW’s M division is going into full assault mode by planning to launch 30 new models by the end of this decade.

BMW M is ending the decade in a full assault mode, as the performance division is planning to launch up to 30 new models by the end of 2030.

Speaking to CarSales, BMW M CEO Frank van Meel said that these 30 new models will come out in the “next two and a half years," and they will include both full-fledged M and M Performance models.

Leading this new 30-model assault plan is the now-confirmed Neue Klasse-based BMW i3 M that was teased earlier this year. Set to become the first full-fledged all-electric M model, the new i3 M is said to underpin a quad-motor powertrain setup capable of delivering over 1,000 hp, plus an Ioniq 5 N-style simulated gear shift system.

The first-ever M3 EV is said to debut alongside its combustion twin, the next-gen BMW M3, as well as the performance version of the second-gen iX3, the BMW iX3 M. Joining the 3 Series family are a series of facelifts and updated models, including both the G90-gen M5 and M5 Touring, as well as the redesigned versions of the current-gen X5, X6, and X7—the latter three will feature a mix of M and M Performance variants.

Not to forget, BMW is also planning to give the facelift version of the G70-gen BMW 7 Series a new M Performance variant, although we’re not sure whether this will also apply to its electric twin, the BMW i7.

Speaking of M Performance variants, the M division boss said electrified performance models like the BMW i4 M60 have proven to be quite popular in markets with favourable policies and regulations for EVs. He noted that in EV-centric markets like France, customers have to pay as much as €18,000 (RM83,082) on CO₂ tax alone for combustion-powered M models like the M2.

Nevertheless, such policies and regulations could bode well for the upcoming i3 M, although the BMW M exec admitted that he isn’t sure how customers will respond to it, while still believing that the model has “exactly the technology everyone has been waiting for in a high-performance [electric] car.”

Despite this recent focus on performance EVs, BMW M is still planning to continue with its beloved combustion-powered models by retaining both its signature straight-six and V8 engines for as long as it can.

The same, however, cannot be said for manual M cars, with van Meel explaining that manual cars “don’t really make sense because it limits you in torque and also in fuel consumption.”

The exec, however, acknowledged that the technology is still relevant from an emotional and customer standpoint, which also explains BMW M’s decision to keep them around for as long as possible.

That said, the future for manual M cars is looking quite bleak, as van Meel pointed out that it will be “quite difficult, in the future, to develop completely new gearboxes because the segment in the market is quite small, and the suppliers are not so keen on doing something like that.”

In other words, manual transmissions in M cars will likely be safe for the “next couple of years,” but it will likely become “difficult to keep the manuals alive, especially in the next decade.”