BMW’s First Electric M Cars Are Coming—And They’re Not Hiding Anymore
News

BMW’s First Electric M Cars Are Coming—And They’re Not Hiding Anymore

The world didn’t end when BMW put the Ultimate Driving Machine badge on a front-wheel-drive minivan. Nor did the sky fall when the 3-Series briefly flirted with a three-cylinder engine. So forgive us if we’re not clutching our pearls now that BMW’s M division is inching toward its first production EV. Based on new spy footage, judgment day isn’t here—but something big is coming.

Electric M, the Full-Strength Kind

BMW has been selling “M Performance” EVs for a few years now, but a genuine, capital-M electric M car has remained conspicuously absent. That changes soon. Fresh spy video from Tenerife shows a convoy of heavily camouflaged prototypes, including what insiders believe to be the M3 EV and X3 M EV, leading the brand’s upcoming electric assault.

Here’s the interesting part: despite being battery-powered, neither model appears to be adopting the “i” prefix. BMW seems determined to tell the world that these cars are M cars first, EVs second. But with a gasoline M3 continuing alongside the electric version, Munich will still need to find a way to distinguish the two without causing badge chaos. The X3 M, however, has a cleaner runway—BMW has no plans for another gas-powered generation.

Under the Camouflage: Production Shapes and Serious Hardware

Both prototypes look like they’re wearing their production bodywork, just buried under layers of camouflage thick enough to make a winter parka jealous. The headlights seem final on both, while the X3 M EV already carries production taillights lifted from the standard iX3. Oddly, both vehicles have swollen rear bumpers bulging with extra cladding, as if BMW doesn’t want us to know what’s happening back there.

But the wheels tell the real story.

  • M3 EV: 20-inch rear alloys wearing 295/35 ZR20 rubber.
  • X3 M EV: 21-inch fronts with 275/35 ZR21 tires.
    Both are running drilled brake rotors all around—no surprise, considering the mass they’ll have to control when pushing nearly 700 hp.

The crossover is almost certainly AWD. The sedan? Likely RWD to start, because BMW knows its audience.

How Much Power? Plenty.

BMW hasn’t released numbers yet, but logic—and a few leaks—paint a clear picture. The current iX3 50 xDrive tops out at 470 hp. Rumor has the iX3 M60 coming with about 620 hp, leaving room for the full M version to reach into the high-600s, maybe more.

With more motors on board, the X3 M EV may actually out-gun the M3 EV on paper. Whether it will out-gun it in the corners is another question entirely.

Gasoline Isn’t Dead Yet

Interestingly, not all prototypes caught in Tenerife were electric. BMW is also testing the next-gen 3-Series with combustion engines, and despite mixing ICE and EV platforms, the brand’s Neue Klasse design language keeps them visually aligned.

One camouflaged test car sported quad exhausts, but don’t call it an M3. That’s actually the upcoming M Performance model, likely to be renamed M350, powered by an updated six-cylinder B58 packing over 400 hp. The proper S58-powered M3 will follow later with more than 500 hp, a mild-hybrid assist, and likely an automatic-only, xDrive-only setup.

The Roadmap

Here’s how the timeline shakes out:

  • 2026: Next-gen 3-Series debuts, right after the new i3 sedan.
  • 2027: Electric M3 EV arrives first, followed by the X3 M EV.
  • 2028: The new combustion M3 bows as the last ICE hero from M division.

BMW’s electric M future isn’t a matter of if—it’s already on the roads, wrapped in swirls of black-and-white vinyl. And while purists may mourn the quieting of the M3’s signature bark, these prototypes make one thing clear: Munich isn’t entering the electric era timidly. It’s coming in hot, heavy, and with the kind of numbers that make even skeptics raise an eyebrow.

Let the new era of M begin.

Source: NCars via YouTube