BMW planning smaller SUV

According to a report by automobilemag.com BMW is set to launch an all-new SUV to be positioned between the X1 and MINI Countryman.

Conceived to provide the BMW brand with a new entry point to the burgeoning SUV sector, and to take on the likes of Audi's upcoming Q1 in the small luxury SUV segment, the new model could be called the 1 Series Sport Cross, XCite or even X0 (zero).

The publication says BMW will likely launch the 'Sport Cross' in 2017-18 and that it is referred to as the NEC (new entry crossover) internally.

The model will be built on the BMW Group's UKL1 platform, which currently underpins the F56 MINI three-door and F55 MINI five-door, F45 BMW 2 Series Active Tourer and the upcoming F54 MINI Clubman and 2 Series Gran Tourer (the seven-seat version of the Active Tourer).

The next-generation 1 Series (due 2018-19) and even the entire 2 Series family are also anticipated to move to the same platform, and therefore front-wheel drive.

Like those models, it's anticipated the Sport Cross will feature a mix of turbocharged three-cylinder petrol and diesel engines, and possibly the turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder from the MINI Cooper S in a sportier iteration.

All models are expected to be front-wheel drive, leaving all-wheel drive capability with the next-size-up X1.

It's anticipated the new compact crossover will also present a very different interior to the familiar layout of mainstream BMW models, likely referencing the BMW i3.

Sources inside BMW told Automobile Mag that the new design will be "quite progressive and polarising", and could feature a more compact glasshouse over a broader, more muscular body.

"An internal paper lists a variety of the XCite's attributes: avant-garde, different, urban, unconventional, young, aggressive, wide, low, courageous, anti-establishment, consciously compromised, disrespectful, sensitive, and sensible," the publication said.

A BMW Australia spokesperson told motoring.com.au today that although "there is no confirmation of the Sport Cross at this time", that it would be "very excited to have the model locally should it ever arrive".