BMW E2: forgotten i3 ancestor – From the Old Box

BMW E1

In the early 1990s, BMW took the first concrete steps in the field of fully electric cars, which had to come into their own, especially in the city. It started with the E1, a compact three-door with four seats, with a 19.2 kWh sodium-sulphur battery that was supposed to provide a driving range of 249 km. In terms of appearance, the E1 resembled almost nothing that we knew from BMW at that time, although the headlights were in a sense a precursor to those of the E39 generation of the 5-series that appeared a few years later. A hint of the 3-series E46 was already recognizable in the rear lights.

BMW E1 (Z11) – 1991

The E1 was at the IAA in Frankfurt in 1991 and two years later, in a modern and more production-ready form (see photo below), it would again demand the attention of the visitors. BMW had meanwhile also developed a variant with an internal combustion engine, a modified 1.1 four-cylinder engine from a motorcycle with a power of 82 hp. However, let’s focus on the electric version. It had special technology on board for its time, because regenerative braking, for example, was already present. What clearly left something to be desired was the speed with which the E1 could be charged. When the battery was almost empty, it took about six hours to fully charge it again. In practice, the 200 km range turned out to be more realistic than the previously stated 249 km and the 265 km promised in 1993. Not bad for city use, although we wouldn’t turn our backs on it any time soon.

BMW E1 (Z15) – 1993

At that time, electric driving was not a ‘thing’ at all in Europe and yet BMW already invested time and money in developing an electric concept car. It did that in large part because of the American market. That may sound crazy, but in the early 1990s the progressive state of California was already busy with policy in this area. At the time, they wanted 2 percent of all new cars sold there to be emission-free by 1998.

BMW E2

That played a part in BMW’s motivation to develop yet another concept car on the same basis between the first and second E1. A slightly larger model: the E2. It is that car that was first admired in AutoWeek exactly 30 years ago and that actually fell into oblivion pretty quickly after that. While the E1 from 1991 and certainly the one from 1993 will still ring some bells, the E2 is a more obscure chapter in BMW history.

BMW E2 – 1992

The BMW E2 was quite similar to the E1 (Z11) from 1991, with the main difference that it did not have a sloping roof. In addition, the E2 was longer than the E1. 36 centimeters to be exact. That’s quite a difference, because BMW naturally wanted to answer the American love for large cars a little bit. At 3.82 m, it was nevertheless a relatively small car by American standards. It was striking that BMW did specify a considerably larger range for the E2 than for the E1; no less than 430 km maximum, although the 260 km ‘in daily use’ was more in line with what the E1 should be able to do. You could do 0 to 50 km/h in 6.5 seconds and the top speed was 120 km/h.

Figures that have never been tested in practice, because the E2 has never become more than a finger exercise. In early 1992 the car was on display in Los Angeles to gauge the reaction of the American public and we can only assume that the reception was cool. The E2 did not receive a direct production sequel. This also applied to the E1, although it (the green one from 1993) was still further developed at the IAA a year after the E2. Only with the i3 did BMW pick up what it was already busy doing 30 years ago.