With its latest design studies, the BMW Vision Neue Klasse sedan and the BMW Vision Neue Klasse X SUV, the BMW Group is showing what the next generation of the BMW brand's core vehicles will look like. They represent the range of technological innovations with which the company is demonstrating its future viability.
With the world premiere of the BMW Vision New Class X, BMW is also announcing another innovation that will go into series production: bidirectional charging. This technology makes it possible to use the high-voltage battery of an all-electric vehicle as an energy storage device and to return the stored electricity either to one's own household power supply or to the power grid at a later stage.
This makes it even easier for BMW customers to actively contribute to the energy transition and promotes the sustainable generation and use of renewable energy. Functions such as “Vehicle to Home”, “Vehicle to Grid” and “Vehicle to Load” will therefore be available to BMW customers for the first time.
"Using the vehicle, the My BMW App, the BMW backend – plus a BMW DC Wallbox Professional and their photovoltaic system, customers will be able to control the energy flow in such a way that home charging is possible off grid at times. And, of course, they will also be able to lower their charging costs by feeding the electricity stored in their BMW back into the power grid.” says Frank Weber, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Development.
BMW intends to roll out bidirectional charging in three stages, kicking off with Vehicle to Home for your household. Vehicle to Grid will follow, allowing the car's owner to feed the stored energy back into the network but only in countries where legislation allows it. Vehicle to Load will power external electrical equipment. Interestingly, the German luxury marque doesn't say anything about Vehicle to Vehicle to provide energy to another Neue Klasse EV.
The future BMW iX3 SUV will arrive in 2025 and the i3 sedan will follow in 2026. After the launch of the iX3 and i3, BMW intends to launch at least four more models on the same dedicated electric car platform by 2028.
Source: BMW
