BMW says a new i3 50L endurance test vehicle covered 753 miles (1,213 km) on a single charge, the longest distance any BMW electric vehicle has traveled without recharging. The run, which mixed highway, city, and rural roads, was part of BMW's effort to showcase its sixth-generation (Gen6) battery technology ahead of the Neue Klasse lineup.
The long-wheelbase i3, developed for China, uses a 113.4 kWh pack with cylindrical Gen6 cells that BMW says offer over 20% higher energy density than the previous generation. The company reported consumption of 8.8 kWh per 100 km, and the 800V architecture supports up to 400 kW fast charging, adding an estimated 248 miles (400 km) of range in 10 minutes.
BMW noted the result is a brand record, not a global one, though it exceeds the 1,202 km posted by the Mercedes Vision EQXX concept in 2022. The i3 50L is expected to go on sale later this year, with customer deliveries beginning in the first quarter of 2027. The related iX3 50L, which uses the same Gen6 technology, is already on sale in China and the US, where the 2027 iX3 50 xDrive starts at $61,500 with an EPA-estimated range of up to 434 miles.