With unveiling a car like the iX3 at a motor show in Beijing, BMW foremost wanted to put their best foot forward with regard to electric vehicle technology to an audience of the fastest growing and currently most lucrative automotive market in the world.
But it also highlighted BMW’s cautious approach toward this new class of vehicle, despite the much smaller i3 counting as the company’s first fully electric vehicle. As you might have guessed, this new concept quite closely resembles a third-generation X3, a 5-seat SUV launched just months ago. And they’ve gone and swapped out its combustion engine for 70kWh worth of batteries and an electric motor.
BMW has messed around with its kidney grille too, merging them at the middle and drawing some comparisons with Kia’s own ‘Tiger Nose’ design, but apart from that and the different wheels, it’s quite clear this is an X3 made to look a little more futuristic.
Since it’s earmarked for a full production release in 2020, the company must have felt it unnecessary to dress up the car any more than it needed to for this Beijing preview, meaning that it’s quite likely most of the way to being a final-spec exterior.
When it does receive a full launch, it’s also very likely that its mechanical specifications will not have been altered, and currently BMW is claiming an estimated range of around 400km from that aforesaid 70kWh battery pack.
While it’s hardly a speed demon, it’s 200kW single electric motor gives it more than adequate oomph to wind around any big Chinese city. Speaking of which, it’s planned rollout is expected to begin in China, where it’s slated to be produced as well, begging the question of whether BMW intends on letting the rest of the world have an iX3 in local showrooms.
Despite presumably sharing the X3’s platform, BMW might tap into the i3’s production methods, material choices, and focus on recyclability, further improving the iX3’s on-road efficiency and environmental impact by constructing much of it from CFRP (carbon fibre reinforced polymer).
It’s possible that BMW’s interest in production in China is part of a much wider plan we have yet to see materialise. Ford has already announced that it will shift a significant portion of passenger car manufacturing there, starting with the Focus, saving the company billions, especially with regard to its tighter integration with its EV manufacturing and component supply chain.
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