The BMW Vision Neue Klasse X Concept Brings Back Small, Skinny Kidney Grilles

For more than five years, BMW’s new kidney grille designs have dominated talk about any new car the German automaker unveils. After the 4 Series started the trend, the new 7 Series refined it. Now, the Vision Neue Klasse X concept completely pivoted by shrinking the kidney grilles back down to size. Happy now?

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The Vision Neue Klasse X is an electric SUV concept that continues the design language introduced by BMW with its Vision Neue Klasse concept from 2023. As such, it looks pretty slick.

The first thing, as usual, that you’ll spot is the new, small, slender kidney grilles that BMW has fitted to the front of its new concept. Those skinnier grilles are, according to BMW, now a 3D sculpture that features “backlighting on its contours.” From the pictures, I assume that means the edges light up.

Like father, like son. Photo: BMW

The front end also packs in a set of rather smart looking LED headlights in a nice vertical design, and there’s a polished face that flanks the new grilles. What do you think; is this enough to finally silence talk of BMW’s grille design for at least a couple of months?

Down the side, the Neue Klasse X has the same larger greenhouse design that was showcased on the Neue Klasse, and there’s a continuation of the subtle lines of that car. But, because this is meant to be a sporty SUV, there are some neat angles around the wheels and at the back end of the car.

Minimalist or boring, you decide. Photo: BMW

It looks pretty smart, and from spy shots that have been doing the rounds online, it looks like this could be a good glimpse at the iX3 electric SUV that the German automaker is preparing to roll out. To back up this theory, BMW said in a release:

“The BMW Vision Neue Klasse X provides a look ahead to the X models of the Neue Klasse. The same principles apply to our Sport Activity Vehicles: electric, digital, and circular,” says Adrian van Hooydonk, head of BMW Group Design. “The X models will always remain strong in character: monolithic, clean, and with a very distinctive vertical interpretation of the BMW light signature.”

The new concept has more than just neat styling to talk about though, as it’s also got a wild interior that we should move onto next.

Thanks to the high-riding SUV design and the car’s all-electric powertrain, BMW says it has been able to maximize the space inside the Neue Klasse X. It’s then filled that space with natural light, thanks to those large windows, and warm-colored textiles across almost every surface.

Big fan of this interior. Photo: BMW

Up front, there’s a central display integrated into the instrument panel, which will control most of the car’s controls. That dash will also be made from plant-derived materials, and BMW says the new car will utilize maritime plastics in some components.

To power all this around town, the new SUV will use an all-electric powertrain that BMW says will run on batteries with a 20 percent higher energy density compared with current cells. This will improve charging speeds by 30 percent and should give the car 30 percent more range. More range than what, though, is the big question.

Is this the future of BMW? Photo: BMW

So, what do you think of BMW’s new design direction for its EVs? Is this a car that you’re excited to see in the flesh if it ends up forming the basis for the iX3? Or would you rather the German automaker stuck with its massive grille trend to stay loud and proud? Let us know in the comments below.