From 2018 onward, the BMW 530e iPerformance PHEV will be made available with inductive charging. The system, called BMW Wireless Charging, consists of a loading plate fixed onto the garage floor and a coil installed under the front of the vehicle.
If it sounds simple to make a primary coil and a secondary coil work together, that’s far from it. BMW has been developing the technology for quite a long time now, following in the footsteps of the system designed by Plugless Power for the BMW i3, Nissan Leaf, Tesla Model S, and the Chevrolet Volt.
The 530e iPerformance is fitted with a 9.4 kWh lithium-ion battery. The plug-in hybrid sedan is capable of being recharged wirelessly in 3.5 hours at a steady 3.2 kW. That’s 0.5 kW less than the onboard charger, though this is a small price to pay considering no cables are needed to juice up the 530e.
“An alternating magnetic field is generated between the two coils, through which electricity is transmitted without cables or contacts,” explains BMW in the video description. “This form of power supply to the high-voltage battery is extremely convenient for customers.” Not only that, but it’s less weird than the metal snake self-charging system Tesla is working on since 2015.
BMW doesn’t have a price for the wireless charging system just yet, but something like $1,500 should be expected by prospective customers. After the 530e, other iPerformance models will follow, including the 330e, 740e, as well as electric BMW models such as the i3, i8, and upcoming i5.
As a brief refresher, the 530e iPerformance is the most eco-friendly and fuel-efficient 5 Series from the G30 generation. Priced in Germany from €53,600, the plug-in hybrid sedan is also available in the United States from $52,400 before destination. Combining an electric motor and a 2.0-liter BMW TwinPower Turbo four-cylinder engine, the 530e is adequately quick.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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