BMW’s Leipzig, Germany plant has been online since 2005, when it started by building the E90 3 Series. Now, it’s getting ready to shut down for five and a half weeks, so it get some some updates that require big bucks. Hundreds of millions of dollars are being poured into Leipzig to get it ready for the future, and according to BMWBlog, that future seems to be the upcoming electric i1.
While BMW didn’t give any specifics about what the nine-figure upgrade is for, plant manager Petra Peterhänsel reportedly said that “we’re preparing for the ‘Neue Klasse.” But Leipzig specializes in small cars. Currently, it builds cars like the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, 2 Series Active Tourer, all-electric Mini Countryman, and, you guessed it, the 1 Series. That’s not to say it can’t also build larger cars, but BMW seems to focus Leipzig’s output on smaller stuff.
So what Neue Klasse car is small enough to be built there? Well, it won’t be the i3. Not only is that larger than every car currently built at Leipzig, but it’s also going to be built in Munich. The BMW iX3 is built in the Debrecen, Hungary plant, so it won’t be that, either. The only Neue Klasse car left that would be the upcoming i1 (codenamed NB0). BMW is also planning an i2 Gran Coupe, but that would essentially be an i1 with a different body, so they’d likely be built in the same plant. Plus, BMW already makes a 2 Series Gran Coupe in Leipzig.
Interestingly, the Neue Klasse versions of the 1 and 2 Series’ will likely have reversed drivetrains. The current gas-powered cars are front-wheel drive, but the Neue Klasse chassis is set up for rear-wheel drive first. Its front wheels can be powered, but only in dual-motor, all-wheel drive cars. And if the i1 remains a hatchback, it will mark the return of a fan-favorite model, the beloved rear-wheel drive 1 Series hatchback. While that car could have a straight-six and a manual, the new one will only be electric, which isn’t as fun but still, any rear-drive BMW hatch is okay in my book. Even with my deep distrust of the sort of humanoid robots that build cars there. I’ve seen iRobot, you’re not fooling me, machines.
BMW won’t officially say what the Neue Klasse upgrades are for in Leipzig, but where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And there seems to be a decent amount of BMW i1 smoke.
