With the industry moving towards eco-friendly cars, it won't be long before Bavarian automaker, BMW, has a plug-in variant for each vehicle in the new BMW range. With the company pursing the future, small steps at a time, we're really close to the first one hitting the production line and making its way to us at Autohaus BMW.
Which model is it, you ask? It's the X5 and its PHEV concept. The SUV will be able to travel 18.6 miles on an electric charge and raise the speedometer to 75 mph, while in that particular mode. The new luxury vehicle will use a 4-cylinder motor that's combined with a 70kW electric engine. The X5 will launch from 0-60 in under 7 seconds. While the industry is still waiting on EPA estimates, however, over in Europe the X5 hybridreached 62 mpg. We're staying optimistic on this one and believe the plug-in will obtain a similar rating in the U.S.
Of course, before the X5 plug-in makes it to the States, BMW want to be certain it's the best possible. That means getting the absolute most out of the Lithium-ion batteries. Still, they are really close to a final solution and that has us extremely excited.
We're hoping additional information will surface soon, and when it does we'll be certain to include it here on our BMW blog. If you're eager to get your hand on the steering wheel of a BMW now, just simply stop in to our St. Louis dealership and we'll arrange a test drive.