“ICE and combustion will never disappear. Never,” said Jochen Goller, member of the board of management of BMW AG for customer, brands and sales. With that single line, BMW underlined a strategy we’ve been tracking for months: a dual future where combustion and electric power coexist, and profitability comes from flexibility, not absolutes.

That philosophy is now codified in BMW’s decision to consolidate its entire lineup onto just three platforms:

Combustion-only platform: A dedicated ICE architecture for entry-level cars. These will continue to serve markets where EV adoption lags and infrastructure is unreliable. BMW knows that across regions like India, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, petrol-powered cars will remain critical for sales well into the 2030s.

Multi-energy platform: Designed to carry petrol, hybrid, and EV drivetrains, this is where volume sellers like the X5 and 5 Series will live, offering BMW the ability to meet wildly different market demands with a single model family.

Neue Klasse EV platform: BMW’s future tech flagship. The NCO platform is kicking off with the just announced iX3 and the i3 sedan this spring. The Neue Klasse will deliver lighter packaging, faster charging, new battery chemistries, and the “Heart of Joy” superbrain software that defines BMW’s EV future.

How Core BMW Models Fit

  • 3 Series / X3: Both will split identities. Neue Klasse versions (NA0 i3 sedan/touring, NA5 iX3) launch from 2025–2026, while ICE equivalents (G50 3 Series, G45 X3) continue until the mid-2030s. Customers in the EU and Asia will see EVs first, while petrol and hybrid versions remain essential in markets like the US and Middle East.
  • 5 Series / X5: Expect overlap here too. The NC0 i5 is planned for 2030, while the next-gen X5 (G65, due 2026) will run through 2033 with both combustion and BEV variants, including a planned hydrogen option.
  • 7 Series / X7: The G70/i7 pairing already shows BMW’s dual strategy. Future i7s (ND0, from 2029) will sit on Neue Klasse, while ICE-powered 7s and V8-driven X7s (G67, 2027–2034) will continue in most markets.
  • 8 Series: The next 8 Series (G75–G77) will carry ICE drivetrains until 2033, with Neue Klasse BEV versions (ND0-based i7 GT-style derivatives) coming in late 2020s and early 2030s.

BMW’s Smaller Offerings

The big question here is how BMW will split certain models across these three platforms. Entry-level crossovers like the X1 and 2 Series could become ICE-only, while others may go dual-path or EV-only depending on regional demand. Production plans we’ve seen (NB0 i1, NB5 iX1, NB8 i2) confirm Neue Klasse small cars are coming, but whether BMW maintains ICE X1s alongside them is still up for debate.

The Takeaway

Despite ICE continuing “indefinitely”, BMW isn’t backing away from EVs. Neue Klasse is arguably the company’s most ambitious technical leap since the 1970s. But Goller’s words make clear that BMW sees a future where EVs and ICE cars run in parallel. For drivers, that means the inline-six, the V8, and even a future M3 with a petrol engine aren’t going anywhere. For BMW, it ensures profitability across every global market, no matter how uneven the transition to electric proves to be.