BMW has done plenty of controversial stuff lately. It created the first M-badged electric car in the i4 M50, offered a four-wheel drive option on the M3 and M4, and denied buyers of the Competition versions of those cars the chance to row their own gears.

But none of those moves has polarized opinion quite like the introduction of its jumbo grilles on cars like the 7-Series, X7, iX and 4-Series.

Strangely, BMW has flip-flopped between grille styles on its latest cars. The 2023 2-Series has a fairly conventional grille, but the next 7-Series (not unveiled at Munich, but due very soon) is likely to be sporting the same buck-tooth grin as the M3 and M4.

At Munich, though, BMW again changed direction, and quite literally. With the little i Vision Circular concept it moved away from the large portrait-shaped grilles, for a pair of slender wide grilles that run the full width of the car. I don’t know what you think, but I believe they look fantastic.

Related: So You Wish BMW Would Go Back To Its Old Grilles, But Which Ones?

Unlike some of BMW’s more recent grilles, where the two kidneys were conjoined, the pair of kidneys on the Circular are entirely separate. They’re also not remotely kidney shaped because each now measures half the width of the car, aping the look of the grilles onto which the kidneys were mounted on BMW sedans from the early 1960s to the mid 1990s.

Though the grilles appear to feature BMW’s traditional vertical slats, this is just an effect created by lighting elements within the panels. The same technology could also allow the grille to display messages, similar to what we saw on Opel’s Manta GSe ElektroMod earlier this year. And, of course, the headlights themselves are integrated into the flush panels.

While I’ve been happy to poke fun at cars like the 4-Series, I like that BMW (whose designs are sometimes pretty dull) is prepared to push boundaries. But in the i Vision Circular it’s come up with something that it’s not just distinctive for the sake of it, but that looks great and cleverly nods to BMW’s heritage, without looking overtly retro.

I can’t wait to see that grille on a production car. But what do you think? Leave a comment and let us know.