Real Sound, Not A Recording<\/p>\n
Van Meel\u2019s objection is specifically to disguise, not to synthesized sound as a category. Layering a recorded or modeled V8 or V10 note over an EV\u2019s actual soundtrack tries to make the car sound like something it isn\u2019t rather than establish what it is. He backed the position with a detail from BMW\u2019s own sound team: held at a constant 6,000 rpm, the S85 V10<\/a> out of the E60 M5 reportedly sounds like a kitchen appliance rather than the engine enthusiasts remember.<\/p>\n Gear Changes Stay<\/p>\n The gearbox is where van Meel draws a different line. He wants electric M cars to simulate discrete, stepped gear changes rather than deliver one continuous surge of torque, the default feel of most EVs on the market. He does not want the torque interruption that comes with a real shift on a combustion car, since that\u2019s a mechanical limitation of a physical gearbox, not something drivers actually want. Keep the sensation of a gear change, in other words, and drop the part where the car briefly stops pulling. BMW is not abandoning combustion in the meantime. The inline-six<\/a> and V8<\/a> are being updated to meet Euro 7 emissions standards.<\/p>\n BMW M3 Electric In 2027<\/p>\n The car that will actually put van Meel\u2019s rules into practice is the ZA0<\/a>, BMW\u2019s internal code for the next M3 and the first fully electric model to wear the badge. Production is expected to start in Munich in March 2027, built around four independent electric motors, one per wheel, arranged into two M eDrive units, one per axle, with no mechanical differentials and torque vectoring handled entirely in software. Output is expected to land between 800 and 900 horsepower, which would make it the most powerful M3 BMW has ever sold, electric or not.<\/p>\n![\"BMW](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bmw-m-concept-neue-klasse-48-830x553.jpg\" "\\"BMW")
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