11:59 am, June 15, 2026
BMW M boss Frank van Meel has said that the brand wasn’t looking to ‘provoke’ with its latest concept, despite recent polarising launches from the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes.
The BMW performance arm CEO spoke with Car Dealer at the Le Mans 24-hour race this weekend explained they weren’t trying to ‘show something we’re not’ with the M Neue Klasses Concept, which previews what an electric M3 will look like.
This new concept follows the reveals of the Ferrari Luce and Mercedes-Benz GT 4 door – the next generation of electric cars from performance brands.
When asked if he was worried following the reaction to these other electric cars, he said: ‘We just want to make it a great M3 and not try to reinvent the wheel.
‘I mean of course we are working on a new kind of technology that excites us a lot and I think it’s going to excite our customers as well – at the end of the day it’s up to them.
‘A lot of people have confidence that we build cars that can just crack it on the track – that is not the discussion. The discussion with electric cars is always, ‘am I going to be emotionally attached to those cars? Are they appealing to me when I drive them?’’
The BMW M Neue Klasse Concept was unveiled during the run-up to the Le Mans 24 Hours, showing the brand’s future electric performance model.
Though details have been limited for now, it’ll use four electric motors – one at each wheel – while a 100kWh battery should deliver a range of over 400 miles.
BMW M has also confirmed that it will be offering it in either electric or petrol specifications, with no plug-in hybrid option in the middle.
