One of the biggest challenges for car makers moving into an electric era is how they continue the lineage of iconic performance models that are popular not just for how they drive, but how they sound.

No greater is this issue than for BMW and its beloved M3.

Dating back to the E30 generation, which debuted in 1986, its M car has been the pick of the performance saloons for the last 40 years.

But recent history shows that any changes to its powertrain will be met with fierce opposition from enthusiasts.

Back in 2014, the German marque – strangled by increasing emissions regulations – caused uproar among ‘M’ fans when it ditched the naturally aspirated V8 and replaced it with a twin-turbo straight-six power unit for the F80 iteration.

So, strap in tight for the reaction to the upcoming BMW iM3, which has been previewed by the M Concept Neue Klasse unveiled today on the eve of the 2026 Le Mans 24 Hour race.

The electric M3: BMW’s performance saloon is about to go green – and this is what it’s going to look like

The M3 nameplate is 40 years old, with the E30 version (left) debuting in 1986. How will M-car fans react to an electric performance saloon? Time will tell…

The last few weeks have been a showcase of how successfully brands are navigating the difficult transition to EVs.

Peugeot also used the world’s most famous endurance race to publicly debut its new e-208 GTi — the battery-powered spiritual successor to the classic 206 GTi. And it’s been received pretty well, it appears.

Certainly better than Ferrari’s Luce EV, which triggered a seismic backlash on social media as the famed Prancing Horse unwrapped its first eco-conscious car.

But BMW bosses are at least trying to appease their customers and fanbase with a car that carries all the aggressive visual features you would expect from one of its M cars – rather than drafting in an iPhone designer to do the job for them.

The Bavarian car maker says the car will ‘build a bridge between its history and motorsport’. And despite its zero-emission powertrain, it remains ‘instantly recognisable as a high-performance automobile’.

And, given the concept car that previewed the recently unveiled i3, we expect the forthcoming iM3 to look extremely similar to this teaser.

BMW says an electric M3 will ‘build a bridge between its history and motorsport’ as it moves into a battery-powered era

The concept uses a ‘shark nose’ grille from previous performance Beemers, including the 3.0 CSL and 635 CSi

Swollen wheel arches, a prominent front splitter and ducktail spoiler, and aero-sculpted wing mirrors are signature M3 design touches that will carry on into an electrified generation

It’s a looker

This includes its aggressive V-shaped bonnet, which tapers to a point to sit between the brand’s signature kidney grilles.

The angular hood indent houses an enormous air intake that will provide cooling to the electric drivetrain system that drives all four wheels.

It also carries a ‘shark nose’ grille used in past performance models, including the 3.0 CSL and 635 CSi.

Everywhere you look, the design screams M3.

From its swollen wheel arches, prominent front splitter, sailing boat-inspired ‘trimaran-style’ bumper, ducktail spoiler and aero-sculpted wing mirrors, it holds itself well against BMW’s reputation for creating menacing-looking performance saloon cars.

‘The new BMW M design language forms the expressive spearhead of the Neue Klasse – determined and purposeful,’ explains Oliver Heilmer, head of design at BMW’s renowned M Division.

‘At BMW M, form consistently follows function. Every detail serves performance.

‘This project is truly special to me because it carries the BMW M character into a new era.’

The M3 has been the pick of the performance cars across six generations spanning 40 years. BMW wants that to continue with the transition to electric vehicles

Thei M3 will remain the four-door saloon option, while a coupe iM4 variant is almost guaranteed. We also hope BMW follows suit with the outgoing car and offers a Touring estate

The yellow LED headlights will be used in the production car as a nod to BMW’s endurance GT racers

Another standout element is the yellow headlamps that it uses in its GT racing cars.

The car maker says these will be retained for the new iM3 and become a ‘signature feature’ of future BMW M cars.

It’s a similar story of sportiness inside.

The concept has four newly developed bucket seats designed to ‘provide secure support’ for all occupants, ‘even in highly dynamic driving situations’. Whether BMW will put its sensible hat back on and revert to a conventional three-seat bench at the back for the production car remains to be seen.

The seats are upholstered in a striking combination of Bathurst Blue and Berry Red — the trademark colour mix for its M cars — with punchy red five-point belts that leave no question that this is going to be a vehicle with organ-rearranging acceleration.

It uses an updated version of the i3 cabin, removing the traditional driver’s instrument cluster behind the steering wheel in favour of a new ‘Panoramic iDrive’ panel under the windscreen

The concept has four newly developed bucket seats designed to ‘provide secure support’ for all occupants, ‘even in highly dynamic driving situations’

The cockpit itself is a slightly sportier take on the cabin of the i3.

This includes ditching the traditional driver’s instrument cluster behind the steering wheel in favour of its new ‘Panoramic iDrive’ panel. This spans across the dashboard below the windscreen and shows vital information, including speed and navigation instructions.

It also incorporates the same – wonky – tablet-style touchscreen display in the centre of the dash.

What has been modified is the steering wheel. The standard i3 has a new cross-shaped design, but the iM3 looks to have a two-spoke setup with widened sections at the 9 and 3 o’clock positions.

Like the i3, there’s a bounty of haptic controls on the wheel itself.

Another 1,000bhp+ electric car… 

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Details are relatively thin on the ground for now, but BMW says it will have four electric motors – one at each wheel.

Reports suggest it will generate over 1,000bhp – around double the output of the current straight-six M3 – putting it among the ranks of Porsche’s Electric Cayenne Turbo as a family EV with four-figure horsepower.

This will ‘open up new potential for driving dynamics and driving safety’ and ‘enable high recuperation performance, optimal traction right up to the limit and particularly direct response’, the car firm says.

It also tells us it will be underpinned by an 800-volt platform and a high-voltage battery in excess of 100kWh, and will use cylindrical cells for optimal energy delivery to the e-motors and during charging.

Given the i3 uses a 108kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) battery and can cover a claimed 559 miles on a full charge, any improvement on this will make the iM3 a performance-class leader.

The battery housing is also said to form part of the construction, being structurally integrated with the front and rear axles – which should make it incredibly stiff as well as responsive.

The angular bonnet indent houses an enormous air intake that will provide cooling to the electric drivetrain system that drives all four wheels

BMW petrolheads don’t need to worry as the new seventh-generation M3 will also be sold with a combustion engine. Both versions should be unveiled in production form later this year

‘Even in the new all-electric era, we continue the M-typical tradition of transferring both technological innovations and defining design features directly from motorsport into series production,’ explained Franciscus van Meel, BMW’s chairman.

Fortunately for traditionalists whose blood – we imagine – is boiling as they read about an electrified M3, there is some good news for you…

That’s because BMW’s seventh iteration of the M3 nameplate will also be sold with a conventional combustion engine – to begin with, anyway.

This will be an uprated version of the twin-turbo straight-six used in the outgoing car and likely with some form of electrification, be it mild or full hybrid.

Both the petrol and electric variants of the next-generation BMW M3 will likely be revealed in 2027, before going on sale in 2028. 

Hopefully, the news that combustion power will remain will tempt petrolheads away from their X login pages before embarking on an anti-EV tirade of Ferrari Luce magnitude, for the time being at least.