BMW, Jaguar Land Rover tie up for electric cars

BMW Group's most sophisticated electrified technology to date features an electric motor, transmission and power electronics in one housing.

BMW Group and Jaguar Land Rover announced that they are joining forces to develop next generation electric drive units, a move that supports the advancement of electrification technologies necessary to transition to an autonomous driving, connectivity, electrification and services future.

The companies share the same strategic vision of environmentally-friendly and future-oriented electric drive technologies. BMW Group brings its long experience of developing and producing several generations of electric drive units in-house since it launched the pioneering BMW i3 in 2013. Jaguar Land Rover has demonstrated its capability with this technology through the launch of the Jaguar I-Pace and its plug-in hybrid models.

BMW Group's most sophisticated electrified technology to date features an electric motor, transmission and power electronics in one housing. This electric motor does not require rare earths, enabling it to reduce its dependence on their availability as it continues to systematically broaden its range of electrified models.

Starting next year, BMW Group will introduce this electric drive unit, the fifth generation of its eDrive technology, with the BMW iX3 sports activity vehicle. The Gen 5 electric drive unit will be the propulsion system upon which subsequent evolutions launched together with Jaguar Land Rover will be based.

"The automotive industry is undergoing a steep transformation. We see collaboration as a key for success, also in the field of electrification. With Jaguar Land Rover, we found a partner whose requirements for the future generation of electric drive units significantly match ours," said Klaus Fröhlich, member of the board of management of BMW Development.

A joint team of BMW Group and Jaguar Land Rover experts located in Munich will be tasked with further developing the Gen 5 power units with production of the electric drivetrains to be undertaken by each partner in their own manufacturing facilities. Both companies will seek to adhere to their own brand-specific propositions in any project.