Said to be launched next year.
The BMW X3 will receive a major upgrade late this year or next year to enter its third generation. The all-new model is currently being tested and internally known as the 'BMW G01'. The next-gen X3's test mules have been spied before, but the latest pictures published by Paul Tan reveal the interior of the crossover for the first time.
The interior of the next-gen BMW X3's appears to be similar to that of the sixth generation BMW 7 Series (BMW G11/BMW G12) and the upcoming seventh generation BMW 5 Series (BMW G30/BMW G31). The steering wheel, semi-digital instrument panel, centre dash HVAC vents, free standing colour display of the BMW iDrive infotainment system, centre tunnel layout, BMW iDrive Controller and the electronic gear selector are all reminiscent of the new Bimmers.
The third-gen 2017 BMW X3 (BMW G01) was reported to be based on the CLuster ARchitecture (CLAR) rear-wheel drive platform first used for the 2015 BMW 7 Series. However a recent British media report suggests that BMW will instead use a new rear-wheel drive platform for the next-gen X3 and the same will modified for the next-gen 3 Series as well as the next-gen 5 Series.
It has been reported that the engine options for the next-gen BMW X3 will include an array of updated four-cylinder and all-new six-cylinder petrol and diesel units. An iPerformance plug-in hybrid variant sharing powertrain with the BMW 3 Series (BMW 330e) iPerformance is also likely, but at a few years into its lifecycle.
Also See: BMW X1 L - Auto China 2016 Live
A 6-speed manual transmission will be standard, while the current 8-speed automatic transmission could get replaced with a new 9-speed automatic transmission. Like now, xDrive all-wheel drive models should dominate the range, with only one or a very few rear-wheel drive models offered.
[Head over to paultan.org for the spy shots.]
