New quad-motor BMW i4 M spy shots remind us the EV super saloon is coming

The BMW i4 is already a relatively capable electric performance car in M50 guise, but a new quad-motor variant is set to blow that model out of the water, and we’ve caught it testing.

BMW hinted at a quad-motor version of the i4 back in 2022, but since then it’s been quiet - focusing on a series of M car releases with the M3 Touring, M4 CSL and XM. The focus is back on the compact executive electric car now with fresh images of the i4 quad-motor testing in the snow.

The prototype car looks the same as the one we saw a few years back. It might be initially recognisable as an i4, but it’s been redesigned to cope with the perceived extra power. The grille and bumper design are taken from the BMW M3 and M4 - placing an onus on additional cooling rather than aerodynamic efficiency. The grille inserts look similar to the M4 CSL’s, as does the lower splitter.

Wider wheel arches are utilised to help provide space for an electric motor for each wheel, not to mention a wider track to help improve stability and traction. The wheel arches on the front feature the same piece of trim as seen on the M3 and M4, rather than the air vent placed lower down behind the front wheel. The rear of the quad-motor car looks unchanged from the dual-motor i4 M50 - although we can spot rear tyres that are significantly wider than the set you get on the i4. 

BMW says the car’s “wide wheel arches permit the integration of specifically manufactured high-performance front and rear axle designs”. The test car is also still referred to as a four-door coupe.

With 537bhp and 795Nm from its two electric motors, the i4 M50 is no slouch, but the quad-motor powertrain could offer twice the thrust from its four electric motors. Frank Weber, head of BMW development, told Auto Express in 2023 that the next M3 will be offered with all-electric power (alongside a petrol-powered equivalent) and its four electric motors could provide up to 1,341bhp. 

BMW says the quad-motor’s all-wheel drive xDrive system “opens up completely new possibilities for infinitely variable, extremely precise and at the same time very fast distribution of drive torque”. In other words, you can expect the new car’s chassis to be extremely dynamic and highly adjustable.

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Dirk Häcker, Head of Development at BMW’s M division says, “Electrification opens up completely new degrees of freedom. We can already see that we can exploit this potential to the maximum, so that our high-performance sports cars will continue to offer the M-typical and incomparable combination of dynamics, agility and precision in the locally emission-free future.”

The current i4 M50 uses a 80.7kWh battery pack but we could potentially see this new car use the 105.6 kWh battery found in larger BMW EVs such as the i7 and iX, which would help counter the extra electrical consumption of the motors. BMW does say all four motors will be able to recoup energy from braking, sending electric back to the battery. However, it’ll likely struggle to match M50’s range of 318 miles.

The i7 and i4 both use variants of the CLAR modular platform where the iX has received its own bespoke architecture. It’s unclear which the new car will be based on, although with the quad-motor M3 set to use the upcoming Neue Klasse platform, it seems like a safe bet that’ll underpin this hot i4 too. 

Having said that, we expect an improvement on the M50’s performance, undercutting its 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds.

Now read our full in-depth review of the BMW i4...