BMW finally said it out loud: the next M3 will be electric — and it will simply be called M3, no prefixes attached. BMW M boss Frank van Meel confirmed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that the brand's first fully electric sports sedan won't be badged iM3 or anything else. Just M3, like every gasoline-powered ancestor before it. The model, internally coded ZA0, is expected to launch in 2027 and will be one of the first series-production BMW M electric vehicles built on the Neue Klasse architecture.
BMW itself has so far only officially confirmed that the new generation of electric M models will begin arriving from 2027. Underpinning these future cars will be a dedicated version of the Neue Klasse platform with four electric motors and independent torque control at every wheel.
There's just one problem: the M3 will no longer have an internal combustion engine — yet BMW insists the signature emotion stays. The company is developing synthetic sound and simulated gear shifts, so drivers should still feel the car through sound and feedback in their hands, even with not a drop of gasoline under the hood.
And here's where it gets genuinely interesting. The electric ZA0 won't be the sole heir to today's M3 G80 — BMW is simultaneously developing a gasoline model, the G84, with an inline six-cylinder engine. According to van Meel, it won't get a plug-in hybrid system like the larger M5.
The electric M3 is set to arrive first, with the gasoline version following later. Exact dates, power figures and pricing for both cars remain unrevealed. But the takeaway is already clear: BMW isn't forcing every buyer into electric power. Two different M3s, two different characters — and the choice stays yours.
Earlier, BMW showed the M3 Touring at the Goodwood festival to mark the model's 40th anniversary.
