BMW’s next generation 3-Series sedan, known internally as the G20, has been caught testing out in the open for the first time.
The seventh iteration of the popular 3-Series is in its early development stages with BMW to present the finished product in 2018, possibly under the 2019MY moniker in North America.
In prototype form, the next 3-Series sedan is lacking many production parts and is heavily camouflaged, but it seems to further evolve the current car’s design language with softer lines and a curvier front end with a larger double-kidney grille than today’s F30.
The G20 also appears to continue the trend of modern cars growing in size with each new generation, even though the current F30 sedan is already longer overall than the E28 5-Series while sporting a wheelbase almost as long as the E39 5-Series. However, this will not come at the expense of weight, as the G20 will ride on BMW’s new and lighter ‘35up’ modular platform used on the latest 7-Series and set to base the next 4-, 5- and 6-Series models. It’s also possible that the new 3-Series will employ the use of carbon fiber components to further slim down.
We haven’t had the opportunity to view the car’s interior yet, but BMW sources have suggested that the Bavarians will respond to customer criticisms in regards to quality with significant upgrades, while bringing its tech features, including the infotainment system, up to date.
Powering the new 3-Series will be a range of three- (likely not for North America), four- and six-cylinder turbo’d gasoline and diesel engines, alongside at least one plug-in hybrid variant and possibly, a limited production fuel-cell model.
Photo Credits: CarPix for CarScoops
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