SPY PICS: New BMW X3 hustles through Green Hell
No lairy M versions of new mid-size luxury SUV spotted just yet, but BMW is working hard on its next-gen volume-sellerThe next-generation BMW X3 has been spied testing again, this time on the infamous Nurburgring ahead of an expected reveal in around 12 months.
Save for the bigger and mildly sportier alloy wheels, there’s very little new to report in terms of the upcoming mid-size luxury SUV’s appearance, but a closer look at the test vehicle reveals this to be an internal combustion version as opposed to the plug-in hybrid variant spotted in August.
Wrapped in high-end Continental rubber, the bigger wheels of this particular vehicle suggest it’s one of the sportier offerings within the eventual 2024 BMW X3 range, but we’d stop short suggesting it’s the replacement for the current X3 M40i judging by the standard-sized brake package and width of the rolling stock.
BMW has long prided itself on making vehicles that are dynamic to drive regardless of the trim level, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise to see BMW’s best-selling model being punted around the world’s most demanding public road course.
If you missed our previous X3 spy coverage, the new model is expected to undergo an evolutionary rather than revolutionary aesthetic makeover, bringing a bigger grille, narrower headlights and an overall increase in size as per the next Audi Q5 and inbound Mercedes-Benz GLC.
Internal combustion, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric powertrains are all anticipated to feature in the new line-up come its 2024 global launch, and the rumour mill is currently in overdrive around the possible electrification of the sports car-baiting BMW X3 M.
What form of electrification is implemented on the range-topper is anyone’s guess, but we do know the next-gen BMW M5 will be powered by a formidable twin-turbo V8 plug-in hybrid powertrain, so the electrified BMW M precedent will already exist.
Odds are we won’t see the all-new BMW X3 M until at least 2025, given new M cars trail behind the mainstream models on which they’re based by roughly a year.
Related: SPY PICS: BMW X6 M sharpens up at Nurburgring
Related: SPY PICS: New BMW X3 spotted doing laps of the block
Related: BMW X3 M40i 2019 Review
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