Even though it’s only the beginning of September, the outgoing BMW X3 entered the 2024 model year several weeks ago. Consequently, the next-generation luxury crossover will be sold in the United States as a 2025MY, but in the meantime, there’s still some final testing to complete. Our spies got up close and personal with not one but two prototypes, which had slightly less camouflage than on previous encounters. Both had the production body.
Right off the bat, we should mention that the two test vehicles had combustion engines since the future iX3 will look substantially different by switching to the Neue Klasse platform. The current electric crossover has essentially the same design as the conventionally powered X3 by sharing the CLAR platform but that will change in 2025 with the dedicated electric architecture.
Of the two prototypes, it’s the one with the license plate ending in “4072” that caught our attention since it has larger two-tone wheels and red brake calipers. None of them had visible exhaust tips, which suggests they were lower-spec trim levels, possibly without the M Sport Package. The hot M Performance version – potentially labeled as an X3 M50i – has already been spotted rocking a quad exhaust system.
Although BMW’s recent designs have been controversial (to say the least), the new X3 (codenamed G45) looks normal in the sense that it doesn’t have an oversized kidney grille or split headlights. It doesn’t seem to be overly angular either. Peeking through the camouflage at the front are the LED daytime running lights shaped kind of like a boomerang in the same vein as the larger X5 and X6 that were facelifted earlier this year. At the back, the “X” motif we saw on the X5’s graphics when the updated version debuted has been reinterpreted for the next-gen X3.
There are still extra layers of disguise on the sides of the prototypes, but nevertheless, it’s obvious the new X3 is the next BMW model to get flush door handles for better airflow to deliver increased efficiency. A minor bump in size seems logical considering the X1 is way bigger than it used to be, now measuring 177 inches long.
Gasoline, diesel, and plug-in hybrid powertrains are planned, and rumor has it a fully fledged X3 M has already been assigned the “G97” codename, but nothing is official. Look for an official debut of the regular X3 versions in the first part of next year since production is allegedly starting in August 2024 or roughly a year before the Neue Klasse-based iX3.
