Well…well…well…how the tides have turned. After bluntly denying that it will never reach the Philippines, BMW has turned a 180 with regards to the i4—its all-electric grand coupe. Now, the i4 is being prepped for a local launch on January 19.
Details surrounding the i4 are scarce, but it’s known that it’s built off a flexible architecture shared with the combustion engine 4 Series Gran Coupe. In fact, it’s made on the very same assembly line in Munich, Germany as its combustion and plug-in hybrid counterparts.
Elsewhere, the i4 is available with three powertrains. For the Philippines, the likely propulsion system would either be the i4 eDrive35 or the i4 eDrive40 (or both). The i4 eDrive35 is the newer of the two choices and this one makes about 286 horsepower and 400 Nm of torque. If these outputs are familiar, they should be since they’re shared with the local iX3. Meanwhile, the i4 eDrive40 makes 340 horsepower and 430 Nm of torque.
For the i4 eDrive35, the battery is sized at 70.2-kWh and this should be enough for a 490-kilometer range (WLTP standard). Meanwhile, the eDrive40 can reach up to 590 kilometers thanks to its stout 80-kWh battery.
The last powertrain option, which is unlikely to arrive due to cost reasons, is the i4 M50. This one makes 544 horsepower and 795 Nm. It also has a slightly larger battery (83.9 kWh). Its WLTP range is estimated to be around 521 kilometers.
Similar also to the iX3, the BMW i4’s design is an offshoot of its combustion engine counterpart, but here, the kidney grille has been blanked-off, while BMW i Blue contrasts on its aero elements signal to by-standers that it’s an EV. Inside, it’s equal parts familiar and high-tech. It has the latest BMW Operating System 8 with the BMW Curved Display. It also has a Hans Zimmer composed engine sound which the brand calls, BMW Iconic Sound.
Pricing is another thing kept secret by BMW Philippines, but speculating based on previous BMW i models launched locally, they could either go for an interlocking price strategy, especially if they will launch the more powerful i4 eDrive40. If that’s the case, expect it to be priced above P 6-million. However, if they will bring in the i4 eDrive35 instead, it will likely be at parity with the iX3 which is currently priced at P 4.990 million. Expect this variant to be offered at around the P 5-million too.
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