BMW iX3 to be revealed on 14 July

- First pure-electric BMW

- Will first go on sale in China

BMW has announced the official reveal date of the all-new iX3. The first pure electric crossover from the Bavarian carmaker’s stable will make its digital world premiere on 14 July. Production began last month in China, where it will be introduced first under the new iNext sub-brand.

Concrete details are still scarce at the moment, but we know that the iX3 will debut the fifth generation of BMW’s eDrive technology. This new-gen model has the drive unit with the electric engine, power electronics and transmission integrated into a central housing, thus reducing the installation space and mass of the drive relative to output. It also offers added flexibility for installing new electric powertrain components in different body styles. Also, this new powertrain doesn’t require the rare earth materials, claims the Bavarian carmaker. The modular and high voltage powertrain of the iX3 will have a claimed electric range of 440 kilometres. This powertrain will then make its way in the upcoming i4 (electric 4 Series) and the iNext SUV.

The new iX3 is being built at BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture in Dadong, China. The Dadong plant has been building the test prototypes of the iX3 already, and the carmaker states that the 200th pre-production model rolled off the line recently. More than 340 hours of testing, including over 7700 kilometres of test drives, had been completed on these prototypes within four weeks.