[michal12]

I just wanted to share my nostalgia for the almost forgotten last generation ActiveHybrid 3. It was launched around 2011 or so, and it was like a 335i on electric steroids. Back then it did not feel that relevant, but in today’s world it would be a godsend. I loved that it was a hybrid, but it was a performance oriented one (with a proper I6 from the 335i) which is pretty much impossible to find these days.

Anyone know whether BMW might relaunch something like this for the G20 generation 3 Series? The only I6 hybrid currently in the lineup is the 745e, with the X5 45e soon to be added.

[giorgoXXI]

I seriously doubt it, I am not sure if there would be enough space to fit it in the 3 series chassis, but I agree, it would be very nice!

Even the 330e here in Europe the petrol engine has 184 bhp (like the 320i) instead of 258 bhp (like the 330i), so BMW are more concerned about economy and emissions rather than performance. Clearly a car targeted to the company car market due to huge tax savings.

[mathys]

I think it is more likely to see the 330i engine paired with an electrical motor, called 340e.

[Fuller]

A b58 paired with an electric motor sounds exciting. It could generate some enthusiast interest in hybrid technology, and might just grab a few people from Tesla. For that reason I'd say no way. It won't happen.

[mkoesel]

They don't even have plans for a 545e, so a 345e would appear to be completely off the table.

Performance hybrids have great potential, but my sense is that the rate at which the industry is headed toward a pure electric future means that, for most potential use cases from most manufacturers, the juice just isn't worth the squeeze. By the time you get it all perfected and adapted across the range, you are bumping up against the timeline where you want to start working toward a pure electric lineup.

Now, Mercedes is rumored to have an 800hp V8 hybrid powertrain coming to a new lineup of "*73" models, so that could shake things up. But BMW is a smaller company, and they already have their hands plenty full staving off disruption. They are perhaps not in a position to spare valuable resources to go work up compelling performance hybrid models.

[AceL]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

They don't even have plans for a 545e, so a 345e would appear to be completely off the table.
.

But now it is. So maybe hope for a 345e after all?

[wassap]

There is plans for a 320e, that uses the same 1.5 PHEV drivetrain as the X1/Mini models, that was meant to be launched this year but i think corona has slowed that down.

I doubt you will see a 345e tho.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by AceL

But now there is a 545e. So maybe hope for a 345e after all?

Indeed, they did add a 545e. The news of that coming to the LCI first hit just after I posted that, I believe. It’s a step in the right direction, although they still have no plans to sell it in the US market.

The thing about the 45e setup is that it only makes a tiny bit more peak power than the B58 O1 does by itself. This is because they are using a grossly detuned B58 M1 with only about 300hp. Contrast that with Mercedes soon-to-launch 580e drivetrain which is reported to combine their 362hp M256 I6 with a 140hp electric motor for 500hp which is actually more than the M176 V8 makes in today’s 580 models.

BMW has at least added the 48v MHEV system to the B58 now, and it features in the M340i now. But I would not expect a B58-based PHEV system to show up in the G20.

Still, I was probably more pessimistic about performance hybrids From BMW in my original post than I should have been. They have more powerful PHEV setups coming in the next generation G70 7 Series and new X8. While it is doubtful that this will trickle down to the 3 Series, it does show commitment. So perhaps by the time the next 3 Series hits, there will be some exciting plug-in options in the lineup.