The establishment of BMW Group of Debrecen, Hungary, comes into operation. Test vehicle production is underway and the first near-final vehicles of the all-electric Model X of the New Class are rolling off the production line. This marks the start of the final preparation phase for the start of series production at the end of 2025.
The vehicle will probably be called iX3. There is already a new conventional X3 with combustion engines. The situation will be similar for the next 3 Series: a new version with combustion engines on the existing platform and a purely electric i3 on the New Class platform.
Four architectural variants for the “Neue Klasse”
Variants of the “Neue Klasse” architecture were announced in 2024:
- NAx for smaller models with rear- and all-wheel drive
- NBx for front- and all-wheel drive models
- NDx for luxury models with rear- and all-wheel drive
- ZAx for BMW M electric sports cars.
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Models with NAx will be launched in 2025 and 2026, probably the BMW i3 and BMW iX3. The new NBx-based BMW i1 and BMW i2 model series will then follow in 2027 and 2028. BMW CEO Oliver Zipse announced: “In just under a year, series production of an SAV model of the New Class will begin in our new plant in Debrecen, Hungary. Shortly thereafter, we will continue with a sports sedan in our main plant in Munich.”
“The production of the first test vehicles in Debrecen is an important milestone for the commissioning of the new plant,” says Milan Nedeljković, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Production. With the vehicles almost ready for series production, the entire logistics and production processes are now tested in real conditions at the plant and are continuously optimized to ensure a smooth start of series production.
Towards series production
The integration of new models into a plant begins with the production of near-series vehicles, an important step to prepare for series production in Debrecen. The test vehicles go through all stages of production. This also means that all logistical processes, production facilities and work phases of the plant’s employees must already function smoothly. The processes are as complex as those of series production. Even if the number of parts is still small, they still have to be supplied in the corresponding logistics processes.
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BMW
Materials and vehicle parts arrive at the Debrecen plant every day. BMW test vehicles are constantly rolling off the production line. Every piece and every production phase are carefully checked. Particular attention is paid to the validation of cutting-edge production systems and tools, including their digital connection.
Testing the future vehicle model makes it possible to identify further optimization potential.
In the coming months it will be a matter of refining the processes based on the knowledge acquired. At this stage, new employees undergo intensive training on systems and machines. The close cooperation between all production areas ensures that all processes run smoothly during the start of series production.
Source: it.motor1.com
