- BMW's planning on giving EVs simulated gear shifts
- Hyundai's already launched this feature in the Ioniq 5 N
- BMW's M division boss Frank van Meel said he likes the way Hyundai thinks
BMW M approves of the use of simulated gear shifts and artificial engine noises in the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, division boss Frank van Meel said in a recent interview with Top Gear (via BMW Blog).
"I like the way they think—that's the way we think as well," van Meel told Top Gear. While EVs don't need multi-speed transmissions for reasons of functionality, simulating gear shifts could be useful for giving drivers feedback of what a car is doing during track sessions, he said.
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
"In a pure EV with one gear, no sound and no emotion, you don't know if you're doing 120, 150, or whatever," van Meel said. "You need a solution for that." It's a solution BMW is already considering, he added.
"We've been working on this for some years already and I think we have some very interesting approaches," van Meel said. However, Hyundai has beaten BMW to the punch by bringing artificial shifting to market with the Ioniq 5 N. Toyota has gone a step further and patented a complete manual transmission for electric cars with a physical clutch and shifter, but hasn't discussed production plans.
2025 BMW M3
Van Meel also approves of the concept of artificial engine noises. While he said the soundtrack in the Ioniq 5 N meant to replicate World Rally Championship (WRC) cars could be better, he again said he liked Hyundai's thinking. BMW M could do something similar, as long as it wasn't a "fake supercar or spaceship noise" and was synced to driver inputs, he said.
The M division is currently developing an electric equivalent to the M3, based on BMW's next-generation Neue Klasse EV platform, and expected to debut in 2026 or 2027. In another recent interview, van Meel promised that it will "beat everything" previously seen. It's unclear if this model, which may be called the i3 M, will feature simulated shifts or sounds, but van Meel mentioned an advanced chassis control system to deliver predictable handling, even at the limit.