BMW launches i sub-brand

BMW yesterday revealed one of the more significant mobility plans since the inception of the automobile: the BMW i sub-brand. The new brand seeks to integrate sustainable elements with a slew of powerful technology whilst simultaneously improving mobility across both private and public platforms. The first vehicles will be launched in 2013.

While Peugeot's Mu was first to the well, offering users the option to buy mobility points to rent a vehicle, scooter, bike or accessory when needed, it seems BMW and their inexhaustible communications resource has blown this similar concept out of the water.

The i is much more than the ability to rent vehicles and accessories when needed, however. It is a synergy of progressive shapes and surfaces, lightweight performance and intelligent applications, as well as an unparalleled use of sustainable technology.

"The new design language is all of these intentions," Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior Vice President BMW Group Design, said at the launch event in Munich. "It is about sustainability and a high level of premium."

The first vehicles to wear the new nomenclature will be the i3 and i8, an urban vehicle and sports car, respectively. The all-electric i3, previously known as the 'Megacity Vehicle', will be launched first, while the i8 – a plug-in hybrid created in the same ilk as the Vision EfficientDynamics concept unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt motor show – will follow. Both will be available solely through leasing schemes, not for purchase outright.

Tailor made for the urban environment, the i3 is divided into two parts: a chassis made of aluminum, which houses the electronics, and the passenger cabin, which is made of carbonfiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) – a material used in lightweight applications such as aviation. As the first volume production car to feature CFRP, the i3's construction is claimed to save 300kg over conventional build methods, thereby offsetting the weight of the battery.

As a credit to van Hooydonk and his team, they have developed a designer's ideal: a new design language that can be continuously expanded. Whilst some design elements are similar to those used by parent brand BMW, the design team has differentiated the design to stand on its own. As the i has no history – only forward looking intent – the vehicles aren't chained to the past.

"It was very important that we empowered this new brand," van Hooydonk said. The new badge, for example, features a blue ring added around the traditional BMW roundel, while BMW's in-house consultancy came up with the brand name and 'i' logo. As the narrowest smaller letter in the alphabet, the i fits the idea behind the brand very well, but it has been expanded to communicate the robust and stable stance the cars will have on the road. "Cars will not always be in cities," van Hooyhonk said, "They must also have these characteristics in the countryside".

A new interpretation of the BMW kidney grille, outlined in blue, is another visual identifier for the new brand, but there will be no airflow through it. Other elements include aero flaps behind the front wheel, which proved their efficiency when tested in the wind tunnel; traditional BMW elements such as the Hofmeister kink and large wheels (though they are narrow in the i application for low rolling resistance); and the L-shaped taillamp design, which maintains the relationship with the parent brand.

Precision in details is also in line with the parent brand, as well as engineering and technology. Van Hooydonk and his team have imparted the feeling of lightness and the aerodynamic aspects of the vehicle into the bodyside by employing layers, as in the Vision EfficientDynamics concept. Sharp lines, which van Hooydonk calls "streamflow", will be integrated into new designs around the C-pillar. "Because of the design we have been able to allow more light into the cabin, but the design also has aerodynamic benefits. This is what we came up with when testing the car in the wind tunnel," he said. 

But the launch of these vehicles within the new sub-brand is merely half the story. What BMW is calling 'revolutionary mobility' will also encompass a number of car independent products and services, a concept built on the widespread use of mobile devices. These technologies will enable location-based information to make better use of space with parking solutions, intermodal traffic solutions (which links public transport as well as private), premium car sharing and other intelligent mobility services. People will not only be introduced to the brand by purchasing vehicles, they will also experience BMW quality and brand values through these external services.

To that end, agreements with new partners are currently being developed, and BMW has set up a venture capital company, BMW i Ventures, which is based in NYC. The metropolitan hub was chosen because of its insight in mobility solutions that BMW says its customers require. But these strategic and long term partnerships the company is aligning will also enable BMW to have the speed and agility of a startup with the automaker's vast resources backing it up.

BMW's first strategic partner is MyCityWay, a one stop mobile portal and city guide that is able to check on public transportation, parking availability, local entertainment and traffic updates in realtime. Currently available in 40 US cities (and with a planned rollout in another 40 cities) the mobile app already has over half a million active users. Its Dining feature, for example, can not only help you choose a restaurant and pinpoint it, but can also book a table there, check traffic updates to the destination, seek out alternative modes of transport if needed, inform you of events that are taking place in the vicinity and locate parking when you arrive there.

BMW says there are still many apps to come offering a multitude of premium mobility services to the i customer, and this is a large step towards BMW achieving its goal to be the leading provider of premium products and services beyond automobiles.

By Eric Gallina