BMW has finally put an end to the naming speculation surrounding its first full-fat electric M car. Despite its close relationship to the new i3 underneath, the four-motor performance sedan arriving next year will simply be called the M3. Hardly a surprise, but there won’t be an “i” anywhere in the name. The latest teaser leaves remarkably little room for interpretation.
The automaker repeatedly refers to the upcoming car as the fully electric M3, rather than an iM3, M3i, or some other combination designed to signal that this particular M3 doesn’t have a combustion engine. BMW says the Munich plant will produce the “first fully electric M3” from 2027, describing it as the first high-performance model in the modern Neue Klasse era.
A quick look at the camouflaged prototype tells you everything you need to know about the car’s name. BMW has already plastered M3 logos all over the near-production prototype in its official preview images, including on the doors, roof, and trunk. As if that wasn’t obvious enough, a new video attached below goes one step further by showing a prototype wearing a license plate that simply reads BMW M3. At this point, BMW might as well remove the camouflage and start handing out brochures.
The Next BMW M3 Breaks With Tradition
The naming decision is significant because BMW has used the lowercase “i” to identify its electric cars for more than a decade. The original i3 arrived in 2013 and established the naming formula that has since been applied to a myriad of models, including the new i3 sedan. Plug-in hybrids have also been using the letter since the i8 coupe came out 13 years ago.
But the upcoming M3 will break that tradition. And it won’t be because BMW has suddenly decided electric cars don’t need their own identity. The regular electric 3 Series is, after all, called the i3, while the combustion-powered version remains the 3 Series. BMW’s own announcement calls the i3 the first fully electric 3 Series, while separately identifying the M3 as the first fully electric high-performance model. The distinction makes sense from BMW M’s perspective. An M3 is an M3 regardless of what’s powering it.
BMW iM3 or M3i Sounded Awkward Anyway
That also explains why BMW apparently never felt the need to create an awkward name such as iM3 or M3i. Those names may have looked logical on paper, but they would’ve diluted the M3 badge’s significance. BMW has spent decades turning those two characters and a number into one of the most recognizable performance-car nameplates in the business. Adding an “i” would’ve immediately made the electric version feel like something different.
BMW is instead taking the opposite approach: this is an M3 first and an EV second. It’s confident the electric super sedan can live up to the nameplate’s 40-year legacy kicked off by the E30. The production M3 (ZA0) will also share its home with the regular i3. BMW is transforming its Munich plant into an EV-only facility from 2027, with the i3 and electric M3 among the models it will build there. Other models will follow, including the already confirmed i3 Touring and quite possibly an electric M3 Touring (ZA1).
The New BMW M3 Lineup Is Likely To Have Four Models
That creates another interesting twist in the M3’s story. The combustion-engined 3 Series is moving out of Munich to Dingolfing, but the M3 is effectively staying home by switching from fossil fuels to electrons. If you’re not ready to give up the inline-six just yet, the M division has you covered: another gas-fueled M3 sedan is launching in 2028 as the G84, with the rumor mill pointing to an M3 wagon (G88) as well.
That’s where the naming strategy becomes particularly clever. BMW doesn’t need to distinguish the cars with an “i” because the powertrains will be obvious from the vehicles themselves. One will have four electric motors and no exhaust system, while the other will continue to burn gasoline. For now, though, there’s no need to wonder whether BMW will call its electric super sedan an iM3, M3i, or something equally awkward. It’s an M3.
And after more than a decade of BMW electric cars wearing “i” badges, the ZA0 is the first BMW EV since the i3 debuted in 2013 to go without one. BMW is essentially telling us that when it comes to the M3, the badge matters more than the powertrain.
As the saying goes, the future is now.
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
