SPYSHOTS: next BMW X1 seen; to spawn iX1 pure EV

The next-generation BMW X1 has been sighted by our spy photographers in Europe, who have spotted the forthcoming SUV on a vehicle transporter near BMW headquarters in Germany. Tipped to bear the internal code U11 for this generation, the BMW X1 will boast three types of powertrain; pure internal combustion, plug-in hybrid and fully electric.

The pure EV version will most likely be called the iX1, in line with naming convention adopted by its bigger sibling, the iX3. As for the development vehicle photographed here, this is the internal combustion-engined version, as indicated by the exhaust muffler box visible behind the rear bumper.

Internal combustion engines for the next X1 should continue to consist of three- and four-cylinder engines. The current range starts from the sDrive16d three-cylinder turbodiesel with 116 hp and 270 Nm, paired to either a six-speed manual or seven-speed DCT, while the four-cylinder versions of the F48 X1 LCI (facelift) produce 231 hp and 350 Nm of torque in xDrive25i petrol guise, or 231 hp and 450 Nm of torque in xDrive25d diesel form.

Meanwhile, the plug-in hybrid is likely to feature an updated version of the setup in the current F48 X1 xDrive25e, which is comprised of the B38 1.5 litre inline three-cylinder turbo petrol with a six-speed torque converter transmission and a single electric motor driving the rear wheels.

The fully electric iX1 could get motive power from BMW’s fifth-generation family of eDrive motors, here adapted to the X1’s front-wheel-drive architecture. Exact details remain unknown for now; more information will be trickling through as development of the iX1 as well as the wider U11-generation X1 range continues.