Could some people getting a first proper look at the next-generation BMW X1 in a few hours?
Thanks to a French BMW dealer, the cat could be out of the bag, as it has created an event on Facebook called ‘Avant-Première BMW X1‘ scheduled for May 2 in Cholet.
Translating this event name from French to English shows the event is called ‘BMW X1 Preview’.
The event description when translated from French also reads, “Dynamism, refinement, connectivity: the new BMW X1 returns more avant-garde and technological than ever.”
“Next Monday, May 2 from 5:00pm, take your chance to be the first in France to discover it!”
“Don’t wait any longer, register! Looking forward to welcoming you, the Charrier BMW team.”
We reached out to BMW Australia for comment in regard to this French dealer event for the next-gen X1 and will update this story once we hear back.
At this stage the next-generation BMW X1 is set for an official reveal soon, probably before the half-way point of the calendar year.
X1 M35i spied prototype
It’s unclear exactly what’ll be happening at this event, but the French BMW dealer has uploaded a new teaser image of the next-gen BMW X1 that hasn’t been seen before.
Reading ‘The X1’, this teaser partially shows the side profile of the new-generation BMW X1. There are also glimpses of the headlights and tail lights too.
We’ve previously seen a number of spied prototypes that have been heavily clad in black-and-white camouflage.
The new X1 is expected to be offered globally with a range of diesel, 48V mild-hybrid petrol and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrains. But there’s also going to be an all-electric version called the iX1.
iX1 spied prototype
Set for an Australian launch by the end of 2022, the iX1 is said to “follow shortly after the market launch of the all-new [internal-combustion] BMW X1.
BMW Blog previously reported the all-electric iX1 will be offered with a 135kW single-motor variant, and a more powerful dual-motor all-wheel drive setup with a total system output of around 185kW.
The iX1 is expected to slot into the space the quirky BMW i3 hatchback left as an entry-level electric vehicle (EV) offering.
It’s expected the wider new-gen X1 range will have an interior that’s very similar to the new 2 Series Active Tourer which was revealed in October 2021, which is in turn inspired by the interior of the iX.
Ahead of the driver in the 2 Series Active Tourer is a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, and a 10.7-inch central touchscreen running the latest iDrive 8.0 infotainment software.
The next-generation X1 will still be based on the front- and all-wheel drive FAAR platform used in the 1 Series, 2 Series Gran Coupe, X2, as well as the Mini Hatch, Countryman and Clubman.
Current X1
The current X1 arrived in Australia back in 2016, and has since been overtaken on the sales charts by newer, fresher rivals.
To the end of March 2022, the X1 is sitting at 584 sales. It was outsold by the Volvo XC40 (1268 sales), Mercedes-Benz GLA (714 sales) and Audi Q3 (713 sales).
It did outsell the Lexus UX (318 sales) and the related Mini Countryman (229 sales) though.
MORE: Everything BMW X1
