QUICK LINKSBMW has formally entered the Neue Klasse period, a change as profound as the unique shift that saved the model within the Nineteen Sixties. At a current roundtable, Joachim Put up, BMW’s Board Member for Analysis and Improvement, spoke candidly about what makes this program a turning level not only for one mannequin, however for the corporate’s world portfolio. In an intensive Q&A session, he addressed all the things from tariffs and provide chain resilience to AI integration, BMW iX3 driving dynamics, and the philosophy behind design and sound.
The Scale of the Neue Klasse
Dr. Put up emphasised that the Neue Klasse isn’t about launching a single mannequin however redefining the whole fleet. “The iX3 is the primary one, however for the U.S. we’re additionally bringing the X5 subsequent 12 months, produced in Spartanburg, with all of this expertise,” he stated. Over the subsequent two years, BMW will roll out the platform’s improvements into round 40 fashions and updates worldwide.
Central to this shift is the Neue Klasse structure (NCAR), which introduces 4 “tremendous brains” — central computer systems that deal with all the things from dynamics to driver help. With 20 occasions extra computing energy than the earlier era, the system permits BMW to separate {hardware} from software program. “That’s one of many keys to being ready for the longer term,” Dr. Put up defined. “We are able to combine extra AI options, replace extra simply, and adapt shortly to what’s coming.”
From Tariffs to Flexibility: Manufacturing Follows the Market
Dr. Put up additionally tackled the realities of geopolitics and commerce coverage. Requested about tariffs, he reiterated BMW’s longstanding place: “We stand without spending a dime commerce. However now we have to arrange for uncertainties.” BMW’s response is to maintain a big footprint in all main areas: Europe, China, and the U.S. That technique has formed the mantra “manufacturing follows the market, and provide chain follows manufacturing.”
Spartanburg, BMW’s largest plant globally, embodies this method. With a long-term dedication within the U.S., BMW is investing closely in a new battery meeting facility and increasing manufacturing of electrified fashions. This local-for-local technique helps BMW stay resilient to tariffs and political shifts, whereas additionally anchoring it nearer to clients.
Know-how That Strikes Quicker
Automotive improvement cycles are historically lengthy — seven years or extra between main generations. Dr. Put up admitted that at the beginning look, beginning the Neue Klasse program in 2021 and solely now bringing it to market may look sluggish. However he countered that the actual innovation lies in how shortly BMW can unfold these applied sciences throughout the lineup. “Forty derivatives in two years — that’s actual pace,” he stated.
The structure was intentionally engineered to be scalable and transferable to different fashions, enabling all the things from compact sedans to SUVs to learn from the identical computing, security, and infotainment upgrades. It’s a means of accelerating expertise rollout with out continually reinventing the wheel.
Driving Pleasure within the Digital Age
BMW’s slogan — Sheer Driving Pleasure — has all the time been about really feel as a lot as numbers. Dr. Put up made it clear that electrification and software program gained’t compromise that id. “It should drive like a BMW,” he insisted. That’s why the corporate insisted on growing the useful driving software program in-house, even when fundamental layers got here from suppliers.
One standout instance is regenerative braking. Neue Klasse iX3 fashions can obtain 95 % recuperation, making braking so seamless that drivers can’t really feel when the automobile comes to a whole cease. Throughout my very own take a look at drive of an iX3 prototype at Miramas, I made a decision to strive one thing uncommon: I briefly closed my eyes because the automobile slowed to a cease. To my shock, I couldn’t even inform when the automobile had totally halted. There was no vibration, no lurch, no sense of mechanical intervention — only a clean, nearly imperceptible transition to standstill. This smoothness reduces fatigue in site visitors whereas additionally maximizing vitality restoration — a win for each driving dynamics and effectivity.
The identical goes for dynamics on the restrict. On take a look at tracks, BMW engineers let me really feel how the computing energy and quick reactions of electrical motors can maintain a automobile planted in situations the place combustion fashions would spin. It’s a part of what BMW calls the “Coronary heart of Pleasure” — a fusion of management and emotion made potential by digital efficiency.
The Panoramic iDrive
The Neue Klasse additionally redefines how drivers work together with their automobiles. The Panoramic iDrive stretches info throughout the width of the windshield, eliminating the fixed downward look at a middle display screen. “When you’ve seen it, you say: why didn’t we all the time do it this manner?” Dr. Put up stated. By projecting vital knowledge straight into the driving force’s line of sight, BMW delivers each immersion and security.
Past Hans Zimmer: A New Sound Identification
Sound has emerged as an surprising frontier for EV id. BMW made headlines by collaborating with composer Hans Zimmer to create futuristic soundscapes. Dr. Put up known as the partnership “very profitable,” however stated Neue Klasse strikes ahead with BMW’s personal philosophy.
As an alternative of mimicking combustion noise, BMW is crafting human, symphonic tones. One challenge recorded a choir of designers expressing what Neue Klasse meant to them, then wove these recordings into the automobile’s sound palette. “It’s not about imitation,” Dr. Put up stated. “It’s about creating one thing new, genuine for electrical mobility. Some clients will love the sounds, others might want silence. There will likely be one thing for everybody.”
World Model, Native Diversifications
Design is one other space the place BMW insists on staying true to its roots. When requested by one other journalist whether or not Chinese language tastes had overly influenced previous fashions, Dr. Put up disagreed. “For us, that’s not true,” he stated. “We’ve all the time created designs that work everywhere in the world, as a result of BMW is a worldwide model.”
What does change, he defined, are native variations for fashions inbuilt particular markets. In China, for instance, clients anticipate a longer wheelbase and extra rear-seat consolation, so BMW produces prolonged variations of sure sedans there. Within the U.S., against this, demand leans extra towards sport packages and distinctive trims. “These are market-specific variations,” Dr. Put up emphasised, “however the core design is all the time world.”
EV Adoption and Market Realities
Lastly, Dr. Put up addressed the uneven adoption of EVs worldwide. Whereas Europe is shifting shortly, the U.S. market is patchier, and infrastructure stays inconsistent. Nonetheless, he argued that when clients expertise an EV, they hardly ever return. “Dynamics, charging pace, vary — when you’ve pushed an EV, you stick with it,” he stated. Neue Klasse fashions goal to remove boundaries with 400 miles of vary (EPA estimate) and 400 kW charging functionality, including 175 miles in simply 10 minutes.
Dr. Put up burdened that BMW’s technology-open method stems from a easy perception: the shopper ought to resolve, not governments. “Rules can set boundaries,” he stated, “however ultimately it’s the shopper who chooses which automobile to purchase.” That’s why BMW opposes outright bans on combustion engines in markets like Germany, preferring as a substitute to supply a full vary of choices. This flexibility has allowed BMW to guide the premium phase in electrical automobile gross sales whereas nonetheless decreasing total CO₂ emissions.
The actual problem, Dr. Put up famous, is convincing clients to strive EVs within the first place — as a result of as soon as they do, they have an inclination to stick with them. Price reductions from BMW’s sixth-generation battery expertise may even make electrical fashions extra engaging, each in value and efficiency. “Some nations transfer quicker, like Europe, others transfer slower,” he added. “However with the pliability to construct totally different drivetrains on the identical manufacturing line, we are able to adapt to any tempo of adoption. That’s the important thing.”
A Gesamtkunstwerk
Dr. Put up used a German phrase to sum up the Neue Klasse: Gesamtkunstwerk — a complete murals. From design and driving dynamics to software program and sound, he sees it as a brand new stage throughout each self-discipline. It’s not only a new automobile however a brand new normal for BMW’s future, one constructed on flexibility, digital energy, and the enduring promise of Sheer Driving Pleasure.
