No end date for combustion engines, says BMW

BMW will not put an end date on internal combustion-engined (ICE) vehicles – like many of its rivals already have – says the German luxury car-maker’s head of development, Frank Weber.

This is in stark contrast to many car-makers who have committed to terminating combustion engine production within the next decade, including Audi, Maserati, Volvo and many others.

But not BMW. Not yet.

“We will not announce any end date of the combustion engine,” declared Weber.

BMW’s vehicle development chief says the structural, industrial and cultural changes required to make a wholesale switch to 100 per cent battery-electric vehicle (BEV) production simply aren’t possible by 2030.

Several countries and regions, including the European Union and the Australian Capital Territory, are seeking to effectively ban the sale of new ICE vehicles as soon as 2035, while the federal government is developing a Fuel Efficiency Standard (FES) that could do similar.

“And it’s sometimes funny in the discussions… we have the impression that this can be done overnight. It’s completely crazy,” Weber told a roundtable interview during the global launch of the new BMW 5 Series – a vehicle that will be available with petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrid and fully-electric powertrains.

“We will not confuse the BMW brand. It’s really key, it’s really important for us. So you will also see in the future that whether we make an ICE offer or pure BEV offer, they will co-exist in markets because you see a large share of ICE and you see a large share of growing BEV and I think we will match also in the future for the next 10 or 15 years,” he said.

Sources within BMW implied that some car-makers pledging to end combustion engine production by 2030 are being liberal with the truth and that in many markets (Australia included) they may continue to sell ICE vehicles to avoid losing significant market share, and also because becoming an all-EV manufacturer is exceedingly challenging.

“Ask yourself what … [is required] for an economy that is 100 per cent BEV-ready? This economy actually consists of four areas: green electricity… green raw [battery] materials sufficiently available… charging infrastructure is an obvious one. Without this, it won't work.

“And the last thing is, if you’re not closing the material cycles with recycling, the system of a BEV won’t be sustainable,” said Weber.

While BMW’s global product chief doesn’t believe an EV revolution will grab the entire planet by horns in the short-term, he understands that change is necessary to reduce pollution and that regulations around net zero-emissions by 2050 will be enforced in most mature car markets by mid-century.

“It’s a process of changing big industry and industry structures,” he said, before conceding that BMW is still pushing hard and seeking to innovate in the EV segment, as evidenced by the significant investment in its Neue Klasse platform.

“Neue Klasse that we just showed on the [2023 Munich motor] show is the biggest financial commitment that we ever made,” said Weber.

“It’s the biggest investment that BMW did in its history.

“Neue Klasse means new [manufacturing] plants, new structures, new battery manufacturing, new electric machines [motors], new digital, new ECUs – it’s everything. Not a single part is carried over from anything we have today into Neue Klasse.”

However, Weber was quick to point out that the ICE- and EV-compatible Neue Klasse architecture will allow BMW to sell both combustion- and electric-powered models well into the future.

“So it’s the biggest investment and… please don't confuse that. We are not saying what the [lifespan] intent of the combustion engine is, because it’s far away.”

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