Late year arrival for landmark battery-pure i5.

REVEALED with a spotlight on its first fully electric presentation, the fresh 5 Series is expected to become a priority for BMW New Zealand,.

Late year New Zealand availability for the all-electric model, called i5, has been confirmed.

The eighth generation of the badge since 1972 continues with fossil fuel reliance but also adds new flavour with i5 in two variants, both using the same 81.2kWh battery pack, designed to compete with the Mercedes-Benz EQE recently launched here and the freshly-departed Tesla Model S..

The rear-drive i5 eDrive40 uses a 253kW/430Nm electric motor and has an official range of 582km on a single charge, with electric consumption of 15.9kWh/100km.

Above this sits the BMW i5 M60 xDrive, which uses two electric motors, has four-wheel drive and which develops 455kW.

Torque? In full strength, availed from activating an M Boost mode, it wallops out 820Nm of torque, enough to take this 2.3-tonne edition from a standing start to 100kmh in only 3.8 seconds.

Not keen on all that electric guff? It still continues in fossil fuel engined form, though for now BMW is only discussing three four-cylinder editions, two diesels not set to be relevant here and a petrol 520i, which gets a 48-volt mild-hybrid system and total output of 155kW/310Nm. Fuel consumption according to WLTP testing is put at between 6.4 and 5.7L/100km, with overall CO2 emissions as low as 130g/km.

Next year two plug-in hybrid variants - 220kW 530e and 360kW 550e - are coming into production. These have a new gearbox-mounted electric motor developing up to 145kW and 280Nm, and a 19.4kWh lithium-ion battery providing claimed electric driving range of between 87km to 101km for the 530e, and 79km to 90km for the 550e xDrive.

In terms of how it looks, this new 5 Series marks a distinct departure from the outgoing 'G30' model, with sharper angles, an almost fastback rear and angular headlights. The kidney grilles optionally get surround lighting.

With an increase in length of 97mm, this 5 Series is the first to be longer than five metres. It’s 32mm wider and 36mm taller than before, too. Rear legroom improves. The boot measures 520 litres for the combustion models and 490 litres for the i5.

The interior delivers a big, curved display containing both the driver's 12.3-inch instrument panel and a 14.9-inch infotainment screen, with access by touch, voice, by steering wheel buttons or with the traditional iDrive rotary controller on the centre console. The version 8.5 software has a 'QuickSelect' function allowing a user to access major menu items with fewer clicks.

An option is an 'Interaction Bar' - a giant, crystal-look panel that glows different colours depending on what settings are chosen and which functions are used.

All models will come with synthetic leather upholstery, with opportunity to upgrade to real Merino leather.

New tech for the i5 and 5 Series includes an electronic driver assistance system update. The new 'Highway Assistant' setup, allows - in countries where it's legal to do so - hands off driving for extended periods. It monitors to ensure a driver is paying attention to the roadscape.

There’s also a new lane-change assistant, which will suggest lane-swapping manoeuvres. A driver can enact this merely by looking at the appropriate door mirror and allowing the eye-tracking software to confirm the manoeuvre.

Your phone can also be used as a remote control, to park the car, and the i5 has video streaming to the big central screen, and video games too, playable when the car is recharging.

As standard, all i5 models come with 11kW AC charging, but that can be optionally upgraded to 22kW. It can optimally accept up to 205kW of DC power, allowing for a 10-80 percent charge in 30 minutes.

Unlike the EQE, i5 lacks the option of air suspension though it does get self-levelling air suspension at the back as standard. Adaptive dampers are standard fit for the M60 version, optional on lesser versions. The M60 also gets an active anti-roll system.

Don’t like sedans? Next year BMW will add a 5 Series Touring wagon, also with electric and plug-in hybrid options.