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NEWS
SPY PICS: BMW 1 Series FAST snapped
Small SUV based on UKL front-wheel drive platform will join other 1 Series derivatives in expanding rangeThe work of spy photographers at Automedia is leading us inevitably towards a new collective noun for BMW's front-wheel drive 1 Series model range – a 'muddle' of variants.
This latest model pictured is understood to be the 1 Series FAST, which Automedia suspects will replace the current X1. It's an SUV based on the same UKL platform as the 1 Series GT and CAT outed a month ago.
'FAST' stands for 'Family Activity Sports Tourer', according to Automedia, and it's not the final iteration of FWD 1 Series we're likely to see before the new models are officially released. There are still JOY (coupe) and MINI MAT (MPV/SUV crossover) models to see the light of day. Adding to the confusion, it's not yet established that the new front-wheel drive variants will be badged '1 Series anyway; no one is quite sure yet, other than BMW... and they're not saying.
As far as can be observed from the new photos, the FAST will likely share rear flanks and rear doors with the 1 Series GT, but the A pillars and front doors, which seem to be common to the GT and the seven-seat CAT won't be shared with the FAST.
The SUV looks like BMW has striven for a bespoke style from the B pillars forward, with the A pillars of the FAST looking closer to upright and the front doors lacking the quarter windows of the GT and the CAT. Further forward, the bonnet of the FAST is a different pressing and the styling treatment of the bluff nose is also more angular, in the manner of SUVs generally. The styling direction for the FAST looks more akin to the standard SUV stereotype than either the Audi Q2 or the Mercedes-Benz GLA that should be the BMW's closest rivals.
BMW is reported to be planning a Geneva debut for the 1 Series GT, which raises one question; will Munich adopt a shock-and-awe tactic by revealing all variants of the front-wheel drive range at once? Or will they take a drip-feed approach, staggering the releases over the course of the year?
Hopefully, for the sake of clarity, it will be the latter; the manufacturer will ease buyers and enthusiasts into their brave new world of Volkswagen/Audi-style multi-model/platform-sharing.
And not rush it...
– with Automedia
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