Upcoming BMW i5 Spied With Michelin Primacy Low-Resistance Tires

BMW, by comparison, still believes in gasoline and diesel because sales will remain robust for the foreseeable future in many parts of the world. Europe, for example, intends to ban the sale of new fossil-fuel vehicles in 2035.

This said, the next-gen 5 Series will be offered with a plethora of powerplants ranging from a four-pot turbo to a twin-turbo V8. Of course, a lot of hybrid assistance will be necessary because of the upcoming Euro 7 standard.

As opposed to the outgoing G30 sedan, the G60 sedan will bring forth a full-electric option as well in the guise of the i5. Caught by the carparazzi with tons of camouflage on every body panel except for the roof, the zero-emissions luxobarge flaunts double-spoke wheels and Michelin rubber.

The Primacy 3 tires equipped on this prototype are specifically developed for two things. Those are high longevity and low rolling resistance for better fuel economy. The abrasion-resistant compound isn’t the best in this segment, though. Michelin unveiled the e.Primacy back in November 2020, the French manufacturer’s first carbon-neutral tire at the point of purchase.

Whatever rubber ends up on the i5, it’s absolutely certain that BMW will pull every trick in the EV book to make the all-electric sedan as efficient as possible without compromising the car’s road holding and braking performance. It’s also safe to assume that a single rear-mounted electric motor will serve as the entry-level powertrain. The main rival of the Mercedes-Benz EQE will feature at least one dual-motor option as well, along with an M Performance variant in the same vein as the new i4 M50.

Speaking of which, the i4 M50 boasts 544 PS (536 horsepower) and 795 Nm (586 pound-feet) of torque, figures that enable an acceleration to 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) of 3.9 seconds. Priced from merely €69,900 ($82,580 at current exchange rates), the compact executive sedan based on the 4 Series Gran Coupe tops 225 kilometers per hour (140 mph).