BMW unveils Vision Neue Klasse: Showcasing the brand’s high-tech, efficient future
For over two years, BWW has been vowing to release a new class of high-tech vehicles with drastically improved efficiency. The company unveiled its “Vision Neue Klasse” for the first time on Saturday, giving us a glimpse into what the BMW brand will look like in the future.
CEO Oliver Zipse revealed BMW’s three-step plan in March 2021 to transform the automaker in the wake of the electric era.
The first phase involved pioneering Project “i,” transferring electric know-how to series production with models (particularly plug-in hybrids) like the i3 and i8.
For its second phase, BMW began offering all-electric powertrain options in some of its most popular segments, with the i4, i5, i7, and more. Now, the automaker is giving us a glimpse into its third phase with the BMW Vision Neue Klasse.
The term “Neue Klasse” is in reference to BMW’s small, sporty cars released in the 1960s that helped carve out a new segment for the brand.
Frank Weber, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Development, said:
With the Neue Klasse, we have embarked on the biggest investment in the company’s history. We are not just writing the next chapter of BMW; we’re writing a whole new book. That’s why the Neue Klasse will certainly impact all model generations.
The new class of vehicles, set to debut in 2025, will ride on a drastically improved EV platform designed to shape the brand’s future. BMW says the new class will feature “30% more range, 30% faster charging, and a 25% overall improvement in vehicle efficiency.”
Meet BMW’s Vision Neue Klasse electric models
The exterior design features will define the different models from BMW’s Neue Klasse. As the head of BMW Group Design explained, “The design of the Neue Klasse is typically BMW and so progressive it looks like we skipped a model generation.”
There’s no denying that. You can see distinct BMW features like robust wheel arches, retractable greenhouse, and “shark-nose” front end, but in a somewhat futuristic upgrade.
The new EV concept includes an almost monolithic vehicle body, large windows, and indentations at the front and rear ends, giving it a unique aesthetic.
Other design elements like the signature BMW kidney grille and double headlights are fused into one area up front.
Next-gen BMW iDrive
The Neue Klasse models will be loaded with the next generation of BMW iDrive. Interaction with the car will occur through BMW Panoramic Vision, the central display, and (a few) buttons on the steering wheel. Other than that, most analog controls are removed.
For the first time, BMW’s Neue Klasse vehicles will feature BMW Panoramic Vision, a new high-tech head-up display displayed on the bottom third of the windshield.
The new BMW 3D head-up display shows active driving information with 3D animations. With the multifunction steering wheel, users can control the display contents of the Panoramic vision and BMW 3D head-up display with their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel.
BMW says the minimalist interior, which is entirely free of decorative chrome or leather, will help optimize its carbon footprint while in production.
The Neue Klass is focused on efficiency inside the vehicle and out. BMW says the new electric models will be built at its new Debrecen, Hungary plant “entirely without fossil fuels and with much wider use of raw and secondary materials produced with reduced CO2.”
The vehicles will feature high energy efficiency with optimized weight, air, and rolling resistance alongside an intelligent heat management system.
In addition to high-efficiency electric motors, advances in BMW eDrive tech include new round battery cells, offering 20% higher energy density than the previous prismatic ones. Charging speed will also be improved by up to 30% while range will be boosted by up to 30%.
The changes increase overall vehicle efficiency by up to 25%, according to BMW. BMW’s Neue Klasse is expected to begin rolling out in 2025 with two new models. The first is expected to be a production version of the model shown at IAA, while the second is an SUV.
The Vision Vehicle will be shown to the public for the first time at IAA Mobility in Munich from September 5 to 10.
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(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on February 21, 2020 shows
US President Donald Trump delivers remarks at a Keep America Great rally in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 19, 2020.
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a ceremony in Jerusalem on January 23, 2020 commemorating the people of Leningrad during the Second World War Nazi siege on the city.
Jim Watson | Afp | Getty Images
The rift between Moscow and Washington looks set to deepen after U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Russia’s economy “stinks” and that lower oil prices will hammer President Vladimir Putin’s oil-funded war machine.
“Putin will stop killing people if you get energy down another $10 a barrel. He’s going to have no choice because his economy stinks,” the president told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
The comments come after relations between Moscow and Washington, which remained cordial at the start of Trump’s second term in office despite the ongoing war, soured in recent weeks.
Trump has appeared to lose patience with Putin given Russia’s apparent reluctance to pursue a ceasefire or peace deal with Ukraine. Last Monday, the president said he was cutting from 50 days to less than two weeks his deadline for Putin to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or face big “secondary tariffs” on Moscow’s trade partners.
That prompted former Russian President and high-ranking Russian official Dmitry Medvedev to respond on social media that each new ultimatum that Trump makes about Russia to force an end to its war on Ukraine “is a threat and a step towards war.”
“Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country,” Medvedev wrote on X. Trump said on Friday said that he had ordered two nuclear submarines “to be positioned in the appropriate regions” in response to Medvedev’s comments.
Russia, one of the world’s top oil exporters, has used revenues from oil exports to largely fund its war machine in Ukraine, which it invaded in 2022. Ukraine’s Western partners have used sanctions and restrictions to try to stifle those revenues, but countries like India and China have continued to buy discounted Russian crude.
This has infuriated Trump and he has, in the last few days, threatened India with steep tariffs if it does not stop buying Russian oil. The president threatened a 25% duty on Indian exports, as well as an unspecified “penalty” last week, accusing New Delhi of buying discounted Russian oil and “selling it on the Open Market for big profits.”
On Tuesday, Trump told CNBC that the tariff threshold could be hiked above 25% in the next 24 hours.
“India has not been a good trading partner … so we settled on 25%, but I think I’m going to raise that very substantially over the next 24 hours, because they’re buying Russian oil, they’re fueling the war machine, and if they’re going to do that, I’m not going to be happy,” Trump said.
Russia earlier on Tuesday weighed into the spat, with the Kremlin saying India was free to choose its own trading partners and that Trump’s tariff threats were “attempts to force countries to stop trade relations with Russia.”
“We do not consider such statements to be legitimate,” Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov continued, speaking to reporters Tuesday.
“We believe that sovereign countries should have, and have the right to choose their own trade partners, partners in trade and economic cooperation. And to choose those trade and economic cooperation regimes that are in the interests of a particular country.”
Oil prices declined to around the mid-$65 a barrel mark on Tuesday as traders assessed the announcement by OPEC and its oil-producing allies on Sunday that they would hike output, amid potential weaker global demand.
After Trump’s comments on Tuesday, Brent crude futures were down 83 cents, or 1.2%, to $67.92 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude slipped 87 cents to $65.41.
Meanwhile, dark clouds certainly appear to be gathering on the horizon when it comes to Russia’s war-focused economy. It has labored under the weight of international sanctions as well as homegrown pressures, also largely resulting from war, such as rampant inflation and high food and production costs that even Putin described as “alarming.” Russia’s Economic Development Ministry also predicts that economic growth will slow from 4.3% in 2024 to 2.5% this year.
Environment
World record alert: 2026 Chevy Silverado EV Work Truck drove 1,060 miles on a single charge
Move over, Lucid. There’s a new world record holder in EV range. Engineers at General Motors recently took a minimally modified version of the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado EV Work Truck out on a real-world test and traveled a total distance of 1,059.2 miles from a single charge.
The Chevy Silverado EV may differentiate quite a bit mechanically from its ICE counterpart, which has been in production for nearly 30 years, but it has made a name for itself as a flagship model in General Motors’ all-electric lineup.
After debuting in 2022, the Silverado EV was released a year later as a full-size pickup in 2023. The two initial trims were fleet-focused work truck variants before a passenger-friendly RST version arrived in 2024. This summer, Chevy introduced the 2026 version of the Silverado EV, featuring an EPA range of 493 miles.
That range estimate also applies to the Max Pack Work Truck trim of the 2026 Silverado EV Work Truck, which GM engineers recently used to achieve a new world record for EV range, besting the previous leader by over 300 miles.
Silverado Work Trucks nabs EV world record for range
GM shared details of its recent world record-breaking EV range test this morning. Per the American automaker, this engineer-led challenge began as a passion project before evolving into a real-world test of a 2025 Chevy Silverado EV optimized for efficiency.
When we say “optimized,” we don’t mean this pickup was heavily modified to achieve such impressive range. Per GM, both the hardware and software of the Silverado EV Work Truck were left untouched. Here are the modifications that were made before testing:
- Windshield wiper blade position lowered to reduce drag
- Tires inflated to their highest acceptable pressure for lower rolling resistance
- Spare tire removed reduce weight
- Wheel alignment optimized
- Tonneau cover added for smoother airflow
- Climate control turned off for the duration of the test
- Testing was performed in summer for optimum ambient temperature for battery efficiency
With these optimization techniques in place, a team of 40 engineers at GM drove a production model Silverado EV WT on public roads near its Michigan proving ground over the course of seven days. To further optimize the EV’s range in hopes of a world record, GM said the engineers used “smart driving techniques” and limited the pickup’s speed to 20-25 mph the entire time.
The result was an industry milestone and, per GM, a new world record in EV range. The Silverado EV WT traveled 1,059.2 miles on a single charge, beating the previous record of 749 miles held by the Lucid Air Grand Touring. The pickup’s range tally also blew away the WT’s EPA-estimated range of 493 miles.
Contrary to GM, Guinness documented and confirmed Lucid’s EV range world record. Additionally, Lucid still wins in efficiency, as the Air Pure achieved 5 miles/kWh compared to 4.9 miles/kWh by the Silverado EV. However, that is not to take away from the team at GM, as this latest real-world test has achieved a welcome industry milestone that should be recognized and celebrated.
Congrats to GM and the engineers at Chevrolet!
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Hyundai’s thinking small, but aiming big. The E3W and E4W concepts, an electric tuk-tuk and mini four-wheeler, are Hyundai’s smallest EVs yet, but they could be a surprise hit.
Check out Hyundai’s E3W and E4W mini EV concepts
Earlier this year, we got our first look at the E3W and E4W at the 2025 Bharat Mobility Global Expo. Hyundai partnered with TVS Motor Company to bring the electric three-wheeler to life, while the four-wheeler is expected to make its way into global markets.
The E3W, an electric tuk-tuk, is custom-tailored to navigate India’s tight city roads. However, Hyundai stated that “the development of the Four-Wheeler is under review, with a focus on its global potential.”
Hyundai, in collaboration with TVS Motor, developed the three-wheeler with an adjustable body. This way, it can be lifted if the streets are flooded during the monsoon season.
The concept features larger tires for a smoother ride and even includes tow hooks, just in case you get stuck in a pothole.
Hyundai and Genesis global design boss SangYup Lee said, “We aim to locally produce the three-wheeler while exploring global opportunities for the four-wheeler.”
According to Hyundai, the new mini EVs offer more than just getting around the city. The automaker previewed several concepts for last-mile delivery, police, and even an “N” branded sporty-looking version.
Will Hyundai launch the E3W and E4W in other global markets, such as the US or Europe? Sorry to disappoint, but given America’s love for bigger trucks and SUVs, the mini EVs are unlikely to make the trip. Not to mention, the new auto tariffs would make it even more challenging.
Europe, however, could be a potential “global” market Hyundai is referring to. Hyundai is expected to reveal the new IONIQ 2 at the Munich Motor Show next month, the smallest from its dedicated EV series. It will sit between the Inster EV and Kona Electric in Hyundai’s lineup.
In the US, Hyundai is ramping up production at its new EV plant in Georgia, where it builds the IONIQ 5 and three-row IONIQ 9. The new and improved IONIQ 5 is coming off its best sales month to date in July.
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