You can now explore BMW’s electrified range in virtual reality on your iPhone

BMW is bringing the dealership experience to your iPhone via an augmented-reality app.

Called BMW i Visualiser App, it allows consumers to look at the brand’s i3, i3s or i8 electrified models as life-size recreations. It utilises the new ARKit technology, which was launched by Apple with the latest iteration of its iOS operating software, to place a 3D rendering of the vehicle in front of the user.

It allows potential buyers to put the car in their garage, driveway or even living room, to see exactly how it would fit into their life. To make the car unique, they can change the colour, wheels and interior specification to their own tastes, before opening the doors and climbing inside.

Andrea Castronovo, BMW Group vice-president of customer-centric sales strategy, said: “Our products are highly emotional vehicles which customers need to experience.

“With this app, we’re able to bring the next best thing to an actual product into people’s pockets – they can just take out their iPhone and see what their dream car would look like on the driveway or how it would fit into their garage.”

Stefan Biermann, head of sales innovations at BMW, said: “We know that almost all of our customers inform themselves about our products online before they visit the showroom, and they often do this on their iPhone or iPad.

“So this is the next logical step – rather than just reading about the product, they can go some way to experiencing it.”

He added that once customers were happy with the car they’d put together they could take a photo and share it on social media. In some markets, the data can be sent to BMW’s online car configurator so it can be tuned in more detail ahead of a purchase.

It is unclear whether the German car manufacturer will keep this service exclusive to its ‘i’ brand or if it will be expanded to the rest of the range.