Aug 19, 2009, 6:32 GMT
Munich - BMW is planning to sell its eco-friendly Megacity model family, planned for the middle of the next decade, under a fourth sub-brand, the car maker's CEO Norbert Reithofer has confirmed.
'We asked ourselves the question what our strongest brand in the concern is and that happens to be BMW,' Reithofer said in a telephone conference.
Reithofer said the first of the Megacity vehicles will feature an electric drivetrain and will be launched under the BMW logo comparable to BMW's M badge, in the high-performance segment.
Reithofer indicated that the car maker was planning a new family of vehicles fitted with electric engines and fuel-saving combustion engines.
SB LiMotive, a joint venture between Bosch and Samsung SDI, is to supply the lithium-ion battery cells for the Megacity project.
There has been much speculation that BMW could revive the legendary Isetta three-wheeler microcar from the 1950s and the CI motorcycle as an electric bike. Reithofer refused to comment on the reports.
The car maker is currently testing a fleet of Mini E-vehicles in New York, Berlin, Munich and Los Angeles.
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