That is it, folks, you’re the all-new 2026 BMW iX3, codenamed NA5. That’s right, what you see here isn’t yet one more concept automobile, but a full production model that can actually go on sale very soon. Let that sink in for a moment.
This didn’t come suddenly, in fact. When the BMW Vision Neue Klasse X was unveiled in March last 12 months, the then-head of BMW i Design, Kai Langer – who has recently left the position to affix Xiaomi, incidentally – told me personally that the production version would look nearly an identical to the concept. We’ve all heard this before, so I told him I’d consider it after I see it. I shouldn’t have doubted him – sorry, Kai!
This also begs the query: now that the iX3 actually looks just like the concept automobile that preceded it, will the next-generation 3 Series (codenamed NA0 for the all-electric i3) look exactly like the unique Vision Neue Klasse sedan from 2023?
But before we jump the gun, let’s deal with what’s in front of us within the here and now. Yes, the iX3 looks nearly an identical to the concept, save for a couple of details which were watered down. The engraved BMW emblems have been swapped out for normal badges as expected, while the digital camera side mirrors and wingtip-door releases are actually more conventional items. The door handles how have a flush, self-presenting design, a primary for BMW.
It’s the bits they didn’t change which are more surprising. The tall and narrow kidney grille (fully illuminated as “light replaces chrome”), the wide enclosed headlights, rounded and more organic shape, right all the way down to the quite nondescript taillights (split by the brand “valley” that’s replicated from the front end), it has all survived the jump from concept to production. Just take a look at the side-by-side images above. Take notes, Subaru.
Size clever, the NA5 iX3 may be very near the most recent G45 X3, though they’re completely unrelated each visually and technically. The mid-sized SUV (or SAV, if you happen to insist on BMW parlance) measures 4,782 mm long, 1,895 mm wide and 1,635 mm tall, making it marginally longer than the X3, but narrower and vertically shorter. Its wheelbase can also be barely longer at 2,987 mm, while weighing 2,285 kg within the launch iX3 50 xDrive guise. The latter makes it around 350 kg heavier than the X3 20 xDrive.
The shock continues inside too. If you happen to had shown me this interior yesterday and said it’s of an actual production BMW, I wouldn’t have believed you – just as I told Kai last 12 months. But no, the alien-looking steering wheel with 12- and 6-o’clock spokes, the parallelogram (not rhombus – yes, I aced maths at school) centre screen and full-width instrument cluster at the bottom of the windscreen are all still here. The wraparound layout is undamaged too, though understandably the pumpkin color way has been sobered up (it’s still an option, called Castanea, but it surely’s far less vibrant).
The 17.9-inch centre screen now runs the most recent Panoramic iDrive featuring BMW Operating System X (I don’t think the Munich brand can shorten it to OS X this time around without risking a lawsuit from Cupertino). BMW says it’s more user friendly (though the on-screen AC vent adjustment says otherwise) and customisable than ever, with access to music/video streaming apps, games (it’s still attempting to make AirConsole occur) and productivity functions.
A primary for BMW, the standard meter cluster behind the steering wheel is not any more. This has been substituted with the Panoramic Vision display that stretches from pillar to pillar on the bottom of the windscreen. Like on the concept, this too is fully customisable, allowing the driving force to select from quite a lot of widgets and select where to display them. There’s also the brand new Intelligent Personal Assistant avatar within the centre, perhaps “inspired” by the Nomi interaction AI in Nio vehicles.
The upper placement of the reimagined instrument display is what has allowed BMW designers to adopt the novel steering wheel with vertical spokes. Look closely and also you’ll see that the horizontal prongs aren’t actually connected to the rim, and also you as a substitute have little tabs/cutouts to wrap your thumbs around, à la the OG Proton Saga. The buttons operate via touch, but with haptic feedback. There may be also a more conventional M Sport wheel without vertical spokes for the less adventurous.
Even with the full-width Panoramic Vision as standard, the BMW iX3 continues to be available with a 3D Head-Up Display projected on the windscreen. Also on are customisable cabin ambient lighting (peeking through the material layers), a surprisingly modest 13-speaker Harman Kardon audio setup (supports BMW HypersonX soundscape for virtual sounds) and a set panoramic sunroof. The glass ceiling doesn’t have a canopy, but BMW claims it has unique solar energy filtering and 100% UV protection.
Beyond that, passenger room each front and rear is alleged to be substantially increased over the previous-generation model, with the rear bench now adopting the most recent sofa-like shape and feel we’ve seen on the 7 Series and XM models. The boot swallows 520 litres, with an added bonus of a 58 litre frunk under the bonnet.
But enough with the boring static stuff already, let’s talk tech. The NA5 BMW iX3 is built on a brand recent architecture, being the primary of a complete family of future Neue Klasse models to come back. Neue Klasse is literally German for Latest Class, and it’s a term that BMW has used once before. Back then, it described a pioneering series of models within the Nineteen Sixties that effectively saved the BMW company from its post-war financial struggles.
For the trendy age, BMW once more claims to have taken a big step forward with this range or Neue Klasse vehicles, starting with what we see here. The numbers speak for themselves: 800V architecture (a BMW first), 108.7 kWh usable NMC battery (116 kWh gross), as much as 805 km WLTP range, 400 kW max DC charging, and the flexibility to realize 372 km of range in only 10 minutes.
For a fast comparison, the outgoing iX3 – itself only introduced in 2021 – had a 73.8 kWh usable battery capability, giving a 460 km WLTP range. In order that’s 75% more range with a 47% bump in battery size. That’s progress right there, and maybe a timely reminder that EV technology continues to be on a steep trajectory.
The massive jump is achieved via a large number of advancements. The most recent sixth-generation BMW eDrive tech (Gen6) developed for the Neue Klasse family uses electric motors with 40% less energy loss, while being 10% lighter and 20% cheaper to provide. Then there’s the brand new cylindrical cell design with 20% higher energy density and 30% increase in charging speed. Are you able to imagine a magic petrol engine that may yield improvements this drastic every few years? Absolutely not.
In iX3 50 xDrive form – notice the brand new naming convention, 50 xDrive as a substitute of xDrive50 making for clearer physical badging – the electrical SUV gets two motors: a brand new asynchronous motor (ASM) on the front making 167 PS and 255 Nm, plus an electrically excited synchronous motor (EESM) motor driving the rear axle with 326 PS and 435 Nm. Together, the entire system output is 469 PS and 645 Nm, with a 0-100 km/h time of 4.9 seconds and a 210 km/h top speed.
The brand new 800V electrical architecture also allows for much quicker DC charging, as much as 400 kW. BMW claims the automobile can maintain the height charging rate for so long as five minutes and in ideal conditions, yield a ten%-80% top up in as short as 21 minutes – that’s staggering for a battery this massive. Crucially, unlike the brand new electric Mercedes-Benz CLA, the iX3 supports older 400V chargers too. For AC, it has an 11 kW OBC as standard, plus an optional 22 kW upgrade.
Beyond motoring, the automobile also supports Vehicle-to-Load (V2L), Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) functions. V2H practically converts the vehicle into a brief storage device for solar energy generated at home, while V2G allows customers to integrate their automobile into the facility grid.
Each V2H and V2G require the usage of a brand new BMW Wallbox Skilled (DC). Unlike what the name suggests nonetheless, it’s not a compact DC fast charger for your private home. As a substitute, it’s technically an AC wallbox (as much as 22 kW, though it uses a CCS2 cable) that supports bidirectional charging, allowing the iX3 to discharge as much as 11 kW back into the housing power network. Whether this will probably be available and even work in Malaysia stays to be seen, in fact.
After which we get to the driving dynamics a part of all of it. “Practically every part about it’s recent, yet it is usually more BMW than ever,” said Oliver Zipse, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. Core to the brand to the purpose of being synonymous with it’s “Sheer Driving Pleasure,” coincidentally a tagline coined for the unique Neue Klasse back in 1962. The brand new Neue Klasse is alleged to uphold that claim greater than ever, despite it being fully electric.
It uses something hilariously named the Heart of Joy, a driving dynamics management “superbrain” chargeable for the drivetrain, brakes, energy recuperation and steering sub-functions, processing information as much as ten times faster than conventional control units. Even with standard passive spring and damper setup, the brand new iX3 drives and steers uniquely like a correct BMW – well, in response to BMW at the least.
It stops even higher than a typical BMW, apparently, with something called Soft Stop enabling the “smoothest stopping process ever achieved by a BMW.” Interesting fact, the corporate says the iX3 will use its brake energy regeneration system as much as 98% of all braking in on a regular basis driving, as a substitute of using its physical brakes.
On the autonomous driving front – with a separate superbrain – the brand new model supports the next level of hands-free driving via its Motorway Assistant feature. With it activated, drivers can take their hands off the steering wheel for long periods on open highways, without being nagged on to carry the steering every jiffy. City Assistant can also be recent, helping the automobile recognise and stop at traffic lights when needed, and driving off again on green.
So there you go, a concise summary (trust me, that is as short as I could make it – the press release is 58 pages long!) of the all-new 2026 BMW iX3 NA5. What to do you’re thinking that of its looks and tech, do comment below!
GALLERY: 2026 BMW iX3 50 xDrive M Sport
Seeking to sell your automobile? Sell it with Carro.
This Article First Appeared At paultan.org
