Base BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe Finally Hitting Dealers Among Myriad Model Updates

BMW tends to announce various model updates all at once, combining a variety of small but noteworthy changes to its vehicles. We’ve gathered the most interesting ones for this little report, starting with the 2 Series Gran Coupe availability. Additionally, BMW announced improved electric range for the i5, and soon you’ll be able to watch YouTube in your BMW.

The Bargain BMW Is Nearly Here

The updated 2 Series Gran Coupe was revealed toward the end of last year, along with pricing. The company started rolling out the new model with the all-wheel-drive versions first, leaving the front-drive model for later. Later is almost here, as production started this month. So the most affordable 2 Series, the 228, will be hitting showrooms soon, and starting at $39,600, plus a $1,175 destination charge. It comes with a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder making 241 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. It also gets a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. With two fewer driven wheels, its 0-60 mph time drops to 6.1 seconds from the 5.8 of the 228 xDrive.

Improved Range From The i5

Next up, we have the i5. BMW made a bunch of small changes to the midsize electric sedan to get a few more miles from them. The car now uses silicon-carbide power inverters and has lower friction wheel bearings. The results are range improvements of between 3% and 8% depending on the model. That doesn’t sound like much, but that means these i5s can go 10 to 20 miles farther than before, which could be the difference between making it to your next fast charger on a road trip. You can see the ranges of the outgoing and upcoming models below.

YouTube On iDrive

BMW is working on enhancing the “-tainment” part of infotainment with its iDrive 9 system. Part of that is adding more apps for providing media. YouTube will be added this spring, so that you’ll be able to stream videos from the service directly on your BMW’s screens. Naturally, this will only be available when the vehicle is parked. BMW will also allow customers to activate an eSIM card with the car to turn it into a WiFi hot spot, something that other automakers have been doing for years.

Related

Watch BMW’s iDrive 9 System At Work In The New X1

The system offers lots of customization.

Note that these features are only coming to BMWs with iDrive 9, the most-recent system available, and to use the YouTube app, the customer will also need to have activated the BMW Digital Premium service. We could see these features being most useful on BMW’s electric vehicles for long drives that may include a stint at a fast charger to complete the journey.