BMW will overhaul its decades-old naming system when it begins rolling out a spread of automobiles impressed by the 2023 Neue Klasse idea, based on a latest report. Core nameplates like 3 Sequence will stay, however SUV buyers might want to grow to be accustomed to new badges.
Citing trademark functions filed in Europe and nameless firm insiders, British journal Automotive wrote that the shift is fueled by BMW’s plan to proceed promoting combustion-, electricity- and probably hydrogen-powered variants of the identical mannequin within the foreseeable future. The publication wrote that the primary Neue Klasse-based mannequin will change the current-generation X3. Gasoline-powered fashions will get a naming construction that consists of “X3” adopted by two numbers, whereas electrical fashions will comply with the identical system however obtain the “i” prefix.
For instance, should you’re available in the market for a gasoline-powered X3 you would possibly have the ability to select from the X320, the X330 or the X340 mannequin. When you’d desire an EV, your decisions might embrace the iX320, the iX330 and the iX340. Observe that we’re utilizing these names purely as an instance the rumored new system; none have been confirmed for manufacturing. For context, the current-generation X3 vary contains the X3 sDrive30i, the X3 xDrive30i, the X3 M40i, and the X3 M, whereas the battery-powered mannequin offered in some abroad markets goes by the identify iX3.
The naming construction of sedans and wagons will evolve as nicely, although BMW allegedly has smaller adjustments in retailer. Utilizing the three Sequence for instance, the gasoline-burning variants will ditch the “i” (which initially denoted a fuel-injected engine) and swap to a three-number system. For instance, you would possibly discover a 320, a 330 and a 340 should you go to a BMW showroom within the second half of the 2020s. The identical goes for the 5 Sequence and the 7 Sequence (e.g., 530, 550, 740 and 760). Electrical sedans and wagons will obtain the identical “i” prefix as their high-riding counterparts, so that you would possibly see an i330 or an i550 on the BMW web site. Because it stands, the recently-unveiled electrical 5 Sequence is named i5.
Needless to say none of that is official. BMW hasn’t commented on the report, and it hasn’t introduced plans to overtake its naming construction. If the rumor is correct, extra particulars concerning the Munich-based model’s new naming system will emerge within the coming years.
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