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Added on the 31/03/2023 07:37:21 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
As part of the production development process, the new BMW i5 first had to prove its mettle back in February 2022, when it completed a road trip from Munich to the BMW test centre at Arjeplog. A prototype model of the all-electric BMW 5 Series fully camouflaged with a special wrap, plastic attachments, grilles and provisional headlights and rear lights set off on a five-day test drive from the foothills of the Bavarian Alps up to Denmark, then on to the edge of the Arctic Circle in Swedish Lapland.The journey of around 3,000 kilometres (1,850 miles) provided an early opportunity for the motors, power electronics, high-voltage battery and integrated heating and cooling system for the cabin and battery pack to demonstrate their advanced level of readiness on a long-distance journey. Featuring cutting-edge battery cell technology and intelligently controlled thermal management, the fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology – further upgraded for the new BMW i5 – forms the basis for long ranges and short charging times during breaks in the journey, even in extreme sub-zero ambient temperatures.
Mercedes-Benz tested the latest generation of brake control systems on drives in Arjeplog, Sweden, near the Arctic Circle. For more than 20 years, an official branch of the Sindelfingen plant has existed here: its very own test centre for testing in the most extreme conditions. In addition to the EQE, EQS, EQS SUV and EQE SUV, models of future vehicle generations based on future platforms were also used in the drives across a frozen lake and up the region’s highest mountain.“During the test drives, our team is primarily concerned with safety, efficiency and driving comfort. The development team tunes the brake control systems individually for each model series – and pushes them to their physical limits.”Christoph Böhm, Head of Brake Control Systems, Mercedes-Benz AGOn the way to an all-electric future, the team is working on a new generation of stability control systems. These make use of the properties of the electric drive to precisely control the torque at the wheels. Most drivers will probably never notice how hard their Mercedes-Benz vehicles work to keep them out of dangerous situations – for Böhm and his team, this is the definition of a job well done.
This was followed by more testing over the course of 2022, both at other BMW Group test facilities and in everyday driving in and around Munich as well as in the vicinity of BMW Group Plant Dingolfing. The task here was to continue refining the car’s chassis technology and acoustic properties under a wide variety of conditions, as well as honing the drive unit’s power delivery, in order to produce a well-resolved driving experience at all times.Here again, part of the development work was deliberately carried out during the colder months on icy and snowy roads in the Alpine foothills. This last winter, BMW i5 prototypes – now sporting less camouflage and near-production headlights – were regularly sent out for testing to verify the functionality and reliability of their powertrain and chassis control systems in extremely demanding road and weather conditions. The BMW engineers involved in the vehicle project were able to directly inspect the current state of development through testing in the BMW brand’s native Bavaria before it was time to return to endurance testing near the Arctic Circle in February 2023.
This was followed by more testing over the course of 2022, both at other BMW Group test facilities and in everyday driving in and around Munich as well as in the vicinity of BMW Group Plant Dingolfing. The task here was to continue refining the car’s chassis technology and acoustic properties under a wide variety of conditions, as well as honing the drive unit’s power delivery, in order to produce a well-resolved driving experience at all times.Here again, part of the development work was deliberately carried out during the colder months on icy and snowy roads in the Alpine foothills. This last winter, BMW i5 prototypes – now sporting less camouflage and near-production headlights – were regularly sent out for testing to verify the functionality and reliability of their powertrain and chassis control systems in extremely demanding road and weather conditions. The BMW engineers involved in the vehicle project were able to directly inspect the current state of development through testing in the BMW brand’s native Bavaria before it was time to return to endurance testing near the Arctic Circle in February 2023.
Before it can go into series production, the new edition of the sports sedan must first complete a programme of testing whose breadth and intensity far exceed the stresses and strains of everyday driving. There could be few greater contrasts with the hot-weather testing in the USA than what goes on at the BMW Group’s winter testing centre not far from the Arctic Circle. Arjeplog in Sweden offers the perfect conditions for a testing programme that eclipses anything day-to-day driving in central Europe, North America or Asia can throw at a car. However, Arjeplog doesn’t only give the prototypes the chance to demonstrate their imperviousness to extreme cold – it also provides the stage for the new model’s chassis controls systems to show off their full range of abilities. The closed-off expanses of ice offered by Lake Kakel and the “Mellanström-Runde”, one of the most popular test routes around Arjeplog, couldn’t be better suited for fine-tuning the DSC stability system and its myriad functions. Indeed, on this glassy surface you don’t need to drive quickly to provoke the control systems into action and therefore analyse their responses. All of which allows the link-up between DSC and the xDrive all-wheel-drive system and the interplay with the new BMW 3 Series Sedan’s M Sport differential to be refined down to the last detail under constant conditions.
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