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BMW is using the festive season to hint at its next move in the electric SUV game, hiding a new model behind Door 24 of a digital advent calendar on its social channels. The calendar has been packed with battery-powered metal so far – i4, i7, i5 Touring and the global iX1 and iX2 among them – but the final square shows only a backlit silhouette. The outline is clearly that of a “Sports Activity Vehicle”, BMW’s own label for its crossovers, and the timing points strongly towards a quiet Christmas Eve reveal rather than a full-blown motor show spectacle.
One obvious omission from the calendar line-up is the iX3, BMW’s latest all-electric mid-size SUV, which has so far only been shown in 50 xDrive form. That version already brings dual-motor all-wheel drive and stout performance, but the brand has precedent for offering hotter M-badged EVs above the regular models. It would make sense for Munich to roll out a more potent iX3 variant, potentially wearing an M-style badge to echo the i4’s M Performance flagship. With BMW’s next-generation electric motors and control systems, such a model could comfortably move beyond the 463 bhp of the 50 xDrive and trim its sprint time well below the already brisk 4.7 seconds quoted today.
There is another strong candidate lurking in the wings: the coupe-styled iX4. Just as the combustion-powered X3 sits alongside the sleeker X4, so the electric iX3 is expected to gain a lower-roofed sister model. Prototypes of this fastback “Sports Activity Coupe” have already been caught testing in near-production form, and the shadowy advent calendar image could easily match that profile. If so, the iX4 is likely to launch with broadly the same technical package as the iX3, including a 50 xDrive dual-motor set-up, with the smoother roofline and cleaner aerodynamics potentially adding a few extra miles to the claimed 400-mile range.
Whichever way BMW jumps, the Christmas Eve announcement is almost certain to stay within familiar territory: a new powertrain tier or body style rather than a ground-up concept. Slotting another variant into the Neue Klasse-based EV range gives the company an extra hook at the end of the year without demanding a major global launch event. For electric SUV buyers, though, the message is clear enough. Whether the wrapping hides a more muscular iX3 or a sleeker iX4, BMW is wasting no time expanding its battery-powered SAV family into niches that were once the preserve of its petrol and diesel line-up.
