BMW: “New Class” accelerates electric car sales

Image: BMW

Since the launch of the first BMW i3 at the end of 2013, BMW has delivered two million fully electric vehicles to customers. Including plug-in hybrids, the BMW Group has shipped around 3.5 million electrified vehicles worldwide since 2013. The company notes that in the first half of 2026, more than one in four vehicles sold were electrified.

In Europe, sales of all-electric vehicles rose by 38 percent to 81,445 units in the second quarter of 2026, driven by the increasing availability of the latest iX3. In the first half of the year, pure electric vehicles accounted for around 28 percent of total sales there. Since the world premiere of the iX3, one in three all-electric BMW vehicles ordered in Europe has been an iX3. Within the X3 family, one in two vehicles ordered currently is the all-electric iX3. The brand is approaching 100,000 orders for the iX3.

"Two million sold BEVs underscore how much our electric BMW and MINI models excite customers around the world. In Europe, the positive trend continued after the launch of the new BMW iX3, and we will soon reach the milestone of 100,000 orders received. This shows the great importance of the New Class for further advancing electrification within the BMW Group," says Jochen Goller, member of the BMW AG Board of Management responsible for Customers, Brands, and Sales.

The two millionth all-electric vehicle was recently delivered to a customer — a BMW i5 M60 xDrive that had already been produced at the Dingolfing plant in May. Also this month, BMW Group’s Munich plant began mass production of the new BMW i3, which is now being delivered to customers as a mid-size sedan rather than a compact car. The high demand is causing a rapid increase in production at the Munich plant, according to the brand. “The BMW i3, as the second model in the New Class, is already seeing strong demand shortly after the early start to orders,” said Goller.

Following the current generations of the iX3 and i3 based on the New Class, BMW plans its next major model rollout. By 2027, 40 new and revised models worldwide are set to adopt technologies from the company’s first all-electric vehicle platform as well as its new design language. Innovations from the New Class will also benefit partially electric and conventional combustion engine models.

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About the author

Thomas Langenbucher is an expert in electromobility with experience in the automotive and financial industries. Since 2011, he has been covering electric vehicles, sustainable technologies, and mobility solutions for ecomento.de. Learn more.

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