A couple of weeks ago, BMW released a teaser image of its upcoming iNext all-electric flagship. Although production isn’t slated to begin until 2021, the overall design is, more or less, locked down. Judging by that teaser image, it looks like the iNext will be a Jaguar I-Pace rival. In other words, an SUV. Yet some wouldn’t fully accept that. Automotive News has now confirmed with unnamed BMW sources the 2021 iNext will be a SUV and not a sedan.
That latter duty will be given instead to the also upcoming i4, which will basically be an electrified version of the next generation 4 Series Gran Coupe. We don’t know just yet when the i4 will arrive as the iNext is priority. More importantly, the iNext SUV will also be slotted above the expected all-electric version of the X3. We saw an early preview last month of the iX3 at Beijing ahead of its 2020 reveal. The iNext is a big deal for BMW because it’ll face not only the I-Pace but also the Audi e-tron. Battery-powered crossover SUVs are the next big thing. Along with its electric powerplant, the iNext will also showcase BMW’s autonomous driving technology that’s being jointly developed with Mobileye, Intel, Continental and Magna.
What’s for certain is that the iNext must be a hit, unlike BMW’s current EV offering, the i3. Recently updated, the i3 remains a slow seller and never came close to achieving the level of popularity BMW once hoped for. Basically, Tesla proved that EVs can be sexy and the i3 is definitely not sexy. The iX3, judging by the concept, looks pretty cool, but it won’t have all of the iNext’s state-of-the-art-tech. Sexy SUV styling and packed with technology is what the iNext will be all about.
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