When BMW Group’s design boss Adrian van Hooydonk told us future gas and electric cars would be hard to tell apart, he wasn’t joking. Fresh spy shots taken at the Nürburgring show what could either be the next 3 Series Sedan or the i3. The absence of a visible exhaust tip might lead some people to believe the car is electric, but that’s not necessarily true. Only the M350 and M3 will have visible exhaust tips, leaving the lesser models to hide it underneath the bumper.
When the new 3 Series and i3 were spotted testing together, we could tell them apart. The EV appeared to have a flatter beltline than the ICE. The two might’ve had different quarter-glass windows, too. However, you can never be too sure about prototypes because camouflage can be deceiving. The i3 “NA0” did seem to have a shorter front end. That leads us to believe the new spy shots depict a 3 Series “G50” in non-M Performance guise.
When we interviewed Adrian van Hooydonk at the beginning of the year, he told us the main difference would be noticeable at the front. Fully electric models will have a shorter nose, whereas the gas cars will retain the elongated front section to accommodate combustion engines. BMW has already confirmed the M3 “G84” with an inline-six. Logic tells us the 3 Series M350 is likely to have six cylinders as well. The dynamic duo will need room underneath the hood to fit a 3.0-liter engine. In the i3, expect to find a front trunk instead.
Speaking of the M Lite, car paparazzi also saw it this week working out at the Ring gym. The M350 is likely to be available from day one with the eighth-generation 3er. The “G50” is rumored to enter production in November 2026 in Dingolfing. The purely electric “NA0” will hit the assembly line in Munich a few months earlier. Full-fat M versions of both cars will follow later in the life cycle.
[Photos: Baldauf]
