We’re only hours away from the new BMW iX3’s big debut, but truth be told, we’re more eager to see its sedan equivalent. The reborn i3, however, won’t be revealed until later in 2026. Meanwhile, spy shots will have to do. Fortunately, car paparazzi have delivered the best batch of “NA0” images we’ve seen so far. For the first time, a prototype is fitted with both final headlights and taillights.
Although spotted at home in Munich, the electric i3 sedan curiously had a right-hand-drive layout. It seems to wear the full production body, right down to the front and rear parking sensors. As expected, it ditches the iX3’s vertical grille in favor of longitudinal kidneys that appear to flow into the headlights.
BMW has already confirmed that only SUVs will get the taller grille. The regular cars will use the design seen here. We’ve seen both kidney shapes before on the 2023 Vision Neue Klasse and the 2024 Vision Neue Klasse X. Those concepts also previewed the new light signatures. The front headlights stay closer to the concept’s look than the taillights, which is probably for the best since the show car’s rear lights sat unusually high.
It’s hard to say whether the production taillights are as wide as those on the concept, since camouflage distorts the view and makes them seem shorter. On the Vision Neue Klasse, the lights stretched nearly the full width of the car, leaving only a small gap for the BMW roundel. The impression here is that the production model executes the design more cleanly. On the concept, the taillights simply demanded too much attention.
Like the iX3, the i3 introduces fresh wheel designs, including the intricate snowflake-like pattern seen here. They look striking and unique, if not exactly easy to keep clean. Elsewhere, BMW continues to apply extra camouflage to hide the Hofmeister kink, while the flush door are hard to miss. Those will play a key role in boosting aerodynamic efficiency, unlocking extra miles of range. Better airflow will be more crucial for the i3 than for its combustion-powered sibling, the “G50” 3 Series.
The gasoline sedan will share nearly the same design, distinguished mainly by a longer nose to house the already confirmed inline-six engine. From a distance, however, the two 3 Series sedans will look nearly identical. As BMW design chief Adrian van Hooydonk told us, you’ll “be hard-pressed [from a distance] to tell which one is the electric one and which one is the combustion engine. It’s going to be that close.”
Both EV and ICE versions will launch in the second half of next year. The Munich-built i3 is expected to arrive first, followed shortly by the new 3 Series. The latter is set to switch production sites, possibly moving from Munich to Dingolfing.
