BMW will launch a mid-range MPV aimed at larger families in 2015, to complete its ‘Project i’ series of upcoming electric vehicles.

Although the first ‘i’ model — the i3 — hasn’t even hit the roads yet, BMW executives are already planning to augment the range.

Essentially, the proposed i5 is designed to compete with models such as the recently launched Toyota Prius V, an enlarged version of the hybrid bestseller which can seat up to seven passengers and offers plenty of cabin space.

BMW will introduce the next generation of head lights – laser lighting on its BMW i8 – that could cut energy use in half compared to LED lights.

The laser beam headlights will be twice as efficient as LEDs, and can be up to 1,000 times stronger.

BMW will use miniscule 10-micron long laser diodes, which is 100 times smaller than LED units, in the vehicle.

BMW has given out the first details and images of its i3 and i8 models before the concepts are shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show

One of the most notable features of the new design is a bodywork largely made of carbon fibre, described by BMW as a “revolution in automotive design.”

The new material, which has never been used for a car body on a volume-production scale before, offers a weight reduction of between 250 and 350 kilograms, which should considerably lengthen the range and speed of the electric vehicles.

BMW is gearing up to unveil its first electric car under the new BMW i brand, according to reports from Germany.

The Munich-based automaker is set to unveil the i3, the first of two initial all-electric models, this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

The new model will feature a 100 kW electric motor and a range of 160 kilometers with an expected market launch in 2013.

The BMW i sub-brand was launched earlier this year by the German manufacturer, promising to put two electric vehicles on the road in the shape of the i3 and the i8.

BMW has unveiled a new brand for its electric vehicles, confirming the first models at a press conference February 21.

BMW i was announced in BMW’s home town of Munich with the promise that the first two models would be launched from 2013, with the names i3 and i8.

The i3 concept was previously referred to as the Mega City Vehicle and has been designed from the ground up as an electric vehicle, according to BMW, making use of an aluminium chassis and lightweight carbon-fiber reinforced plastic.