New BMW iX3 breaks cover: BMW Vision Neue Klasse X previews the 2025 electric SUV designed to beat the Tesla Model Y 

BMW has given us another look at how it will reinvent itself next year with the reveal of the all-new BMW Vision Neue Klasse X concept – a new electric mid-size replacement for its current BMW iX3. 

The latest BMW Neue Klasse concept follows on from the radical BMW 3 Series-sized Vision Neue Klasse sedan that was unveiled at last year’s Munich motor show. 

Sharing the sedan’s angular design language, the Neue Klasse X adopts an updated version of the sedan concept’s full-width front opening that features a conservative take on the firm’s traditional vertical kidney grille. 

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Placing the headlamps on the outer edge, the second Neue Klasse concept’s looks have been clearly inspired by the classic beloved BMWs of the past, like the E30 3 Series or the E28 5 Series. 

BMW Neue Klasse X concept interior.
BMW Neue Klasse X concept interior. Note the sloping console.

Along its flanks, designers have chosen clean surfacing and avoided plastic wheel-arch cladding, preferring a simpler look. 

A lower crease along the lower half of the door is intended to give the concept more of a squat stance while avoiding a slab-sided look. 

Design elements set to be dopped for production include the rear-view camera while conventional door handles will be added.

At the rear there’s a rakish look, suggesting it sacrifices some space for style, while the prominent rear tailgate spoiler and larger diffuser are highlights of an advanced aero design to slash range-sapping drag. 

Finally, the rear boot lid sports a pair of thin wide OLED taillamps that frame a simple take of the BMW badge. 

Inside there’s an updated take on the Vision Neue Klasse sedan’s cabin. There’s a slim full-width instrument panel, that will be supplemented by a huge head-up display.

BMW Neue Klasse X concept.
BMW Neue Klasse X concept.

There’s also the unusual-looking sloped infotainment system and a square-shaped steering wheel. 

Beneath the skin nothing is shared with existing BMW models, the X benefitting from an all-new Neue Klasse platform. 

The highlights of the new underpinnings are BMW’s latest 800-volt electrical architecture and redesigned batteries that are claimed to be 20 per cent more energy dense than today’s EVs. 

Thanks to its advanced new tech, BMW claim the production X should have up to 30 per cent more range, which could see the BMW iX3 replacement cover up to 600km on a charge. 

Thanks to its ultra-fast charging up to 300km of range can be added in just ten minutes – 30 per cent quicker than before. 

Helping it go further on a charge is a new aero that is claimed to cut drag by up to 20 per cent, while a set of new tyres and revised braking, that claws back more energy through regen, has boosted overall efficiency by as much as 25 per cent. 

Ensuring it out-drives rivals like the Tesla Model Y, BMW says it has combined four different ECU’s that used to manage the chassis into one high-performance computer that has been dubbed the ‘super-brain’. 

BMW Neue Klasse X concept.
BMW Vision Neue Klasse X concept. Faster charging promised.

The result, claim engineers, is “more dynamic performance, more precision, more efficiency and more fun to drive.” 

When introduced in 2025 expect the advanced all-electric SUV to come with both a single-motor rear-wheel drive powertrain and a much more powerful all-wheel drive dual-motor version. 

Expect the flagship BMW M versions to come with at least 450kW and for the fastest Neue Klasse X to go head-to-head with the new Porsche Macan Turbo and Maserati Grecale Folgore. 

The first generation BMW iX3 went on-sale in Australia in late 2021.  

One thought on “New BMW iX3 breaks cover: BMW Vision Neue Klasse X previews the 2025 electric SUV designed to beat the Tesla Model Y 

  • April 3, 2024 at 4:14 pm
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    Ultra fast chargers are irrelevant, because they are almost non existent outside the main hwy from Brisbane to Sydney to Melbourne.

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