New electric powertrain technology will allow BMW Group to launch electric cars at a cheaper price but while offering more range and better efficiency than today's cars.

The first to use the ‘Gen6’ platform will be the next BMW iX3, which will be unveiled in September having morphed from the Vision Neue Klasse SUV concept.

The 800-volt platform is claimed by BMW to be a “quantum leap forward” in terms of technology compared to today’s offerings.

“Neue Klasse is not just a new car, it is a new technology,” said purchasing and supply board member Joachim Post. The scalable platform will eventually be used by all BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce EVs before the end of the decade.

It is centered around a new nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) battery that utilises cylindrical cells which are 20% denser and easier to package than modules (made up of square cells) found in today’s “Gen5” Lithium-Iron (LI) packs.

The headline figures are that these new batteries increase range by 30%, efficiency by 20%, charging speeds by 30% (with bi-direction capabilities), and reduce production costs by up to 50% when compared to today’s packs.

These costs - achieved through most of the development and building now being done in-house – will be passed onto buyers, said Post, instead of being swallowed as extra profit. “It is important to be competitive in the market from the price range in terms of reachability for the customers,” he said, adding that this will allow the firm to push for a price parity between ICE and EVs.

To give an idea of the technology’s advancements, if fitted to the recently refreshed BMW iX – which in xDrive 60 form offers the most miles per charge in the brand’s stable – the new battery would increase its brimmed range by 129 miles to 555 miles, with the ability to also add 186 miles in as little as 10 minutes.

 Key to the technological advancements is the new cylindrical cells. They are built in-house in two sizes, either 95mm or 120mm tall and 46mm wide. In both instances, they are easy to package because they do not require modules to fit them together like today, said BMW. As such, they can be attached directly to the pack (called cell-to-pack) which not only saves money as fewer parts are used, but reduces the weight and size of the batteries, allowing for slimmer batteries.

As part of a “clean sheet way of thinking”, these packs are then bolted directly onto the bottom of the chassis and used as the base of the car. Today's packs, for example, are fitted under the floor of the car, rather than forming the floor. This new technique, BMW said, increases the chassis’ structural integrity, optimises car integration, saves money on parts, reduces weight, and maximises interior space.

What’s more, it means no additional battery housings are required. Coupled with the new sleek pack, this allows for sleeker, flatter, and more aerodynamic car designs, potentially eliminating one of the major design hallmarks of today’s high-sided EVs. 

To maximise interior space within this setup, and keep the cars’ heights as low as possible, BMW will unusually bolt the front seats directly to the pack, with the batteries energy master (which manages energy output and thermal levels) positioned below the rear seats.

New and updated motors are similarly important to the Gen6’s advancements. The core drivetrain is the Electric Excited Synchronous Machine (EESM), introduced with the first-generation iX3 in 2018. It has, until now, been the only motor option offered on a BMW Group EV. This has now been heavily enhanced with an adapted inverter design, new water/oil cooling system, fettled weight and the single-speed gearbox integrated into its outer casing. 

It is offered in four variants that range from 270bhp to 400bhp and is exclusively attached to the rear axle - where up to two can be fitted, both, BMW suggests, with independent gearboxes. It weighs 120kg.

New with the Gen6 platform is a small asynchronous motor (ASM) motor. Weighing just 70kg it is offered with either 161bhp or 241bhp. It is fitted exclusively to the front axle, where  – like the EESM – two can be had. This means BMW can now offer  tri-, or dual-motor configurations alongside the single-, dual-motor setups that were solely available in today’s cars.  The motors have been configured to be used for all models from entry level to top-rung M cars. M Division has been involved in the motor development process so this can be achieved, BMW said.

A key brief of the new motors was efficiency. When combined in a dual-motor setup, the pair leak 40% fewer miles compared to two last-generation EESMs. What’s more they are 20% cheaper to make and weigh 10% less. “The motors are an important contributor to the Gen-6 powertrain,” said BMW.

One limiting factor of the new platform is that because the ASM does not house a gearbox, it cannot be fitted on its own, meaning future BMW Group cars, such as the iX1 and Mini models, are not likely to be offered with single-motor, front-wheel-drive setup. One of the reasons for this decision is because a rear-wheel-drive setup is “better for dynamics”, BMW engineers told Autocar.

These motors, like the batteries, are developed and built in-house at five factories across four continents. With as many materials as possible collected within the markets they are built in, this “ensures efficiency and enhances robustness against natural or political headwinds in the future,” said Post