BMW Doubling Carbon Fiber Production; Next 7-Series Will Benefit

It has been confirmed that BMW along with carbon fiber specialist SGL Carbon, are set to double production of the lightweight material for future BMW products. As it stands, the duo produce 3,000 tonnes of carbon fiber annually but that is set to rise to 6,000 tonnes. Increasing production to this degree will see an investment of more than 100 million euros.

The main reason behind the increase is to respond to ever-growing demand for the BMW i3 and i8 sports car both of which use carbon fiber heavily in their construction. However, those two won’t be the only BMW cars benefitting from this extra use of carbon, as it can be confirmed that the next-generation BMW 7-Series, pinned for a debut sometime next year, will also utilise the material.

Additionally, the new BMW 7-Series is expected to use aluminium heavily and as a result, the base 2015 BMW 7-Series, the 740i, could tip the scales at under 1,670 kg thus making it lighter than the current entry-level BMW 5-Series and significantly lighter than the 1,900 kg of the current BMW 740i.

The decision to use carbon fiber extensively in the construction of the 2015 BMW 7-Series stems largely from the knowledge BMW has gained through the development and testing of its new i-series of cars. Despite the lower weight, the 2015 BMW 7-Series will maintain similar proportions to the current model with it expected to measure around 5010 mm long, 1815 mm wide and 1425 mm tall.

Under the hood, the 2015 BMW 7-Series will be available in six-cylinder, V8 and V12 specifications with new in-line six-cylinder diesel options expected. What’s more, a plug-in hybrid variant of the 2015 BMW 7-Series is likely.

[Via Motor Authority (image) and Reuters]

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