The Ultimate Grille for Electric Vehicles: BMW’s New Engines and Super-Brains for the Next Driven Autonomous Generation

But the grille is just the icing on the cake. BMW’s batteries are the most interesting ideas for the future of electric vehicles. The rounded battery cells are 20 percent more energy efficient, according to BMW, and are different from the other types of batteries. When combined with the vehicle’s 800-volt architecture, the battery enables charging speeds of up to 30 percent faster than typical rates, which BMW says will allow the EV to gain 300km (roughly 186 miles) in just 10 minutes.

The vehicle is very similar to BMW. The kidney grille is somehow even more in-your-face than usual, with the automaker turning its signature design into a “three-dimensional sculpture with vertically aligned and backlit corridors.” And it lights up as the driver approaches the vehicle.

Of course, the grille is completely unnecessary on an electric vehicle, which lacks an internal combustion engine in need of cooling. It’s been interesting to watch BMW’s evolving approach to the grille, especially as EV motors replace engines. This iteration will surely make for a lot of spicy takes.

The current model lineup had a reduction in drag of 20 percent. The overall package is designed to increase efficiency by 25 percent, BMW says.

The first super-brain, designed totally in-house, integrates the driving dynamics with the powertrain with “10 times more the computing power.” The company says the next super-brain will lead the push into automated driving.

A Sustainability-Enhanced Mercedes-Benz X-Motor: The Design and Performance of a Super-Yukawa-Bose

The interior is packed with sustainable materials, such as a plant-based, mineral-based and petroleum-free surface material called “Verdana,” as well as maritime plastics and recovered fishing nets. The vehicle itself will be manufactured later this year at the factory that the company says is designed to run on fossil fuel-free energy.

A longer-than-usual wheelbase and short overhangs allow for a roomier interior and definitely looks swank. The materials look extremely nice, and the big windows with slim pillars make for a very illuminated greenhouse. A heads-up display that spans the entire width of the car is offset by a centrally mounted touchscreen.

The battery system has been developed in-house by BMW and uses newly designed liquid-cooled cylindrical cells, 95 mm or 120 mm in height depending on which model they’re fitted in. The energy density has improved by 20 percent, the composition is more nickel but less cobalt, and there’s more nickel in them.