BMW accidentally shows off new i3 electric sedan before big reveal

Someone at BMW is having a very awkward Tuesday. The company was getting ready to show the world its brand-new i3 sedan on March 18, but the internet got there first. A video that was supposed to stay hidden until Wednesday briefly went live. Even though BMW deleted it quickly, people on social media were fast enough to grab pictures. Now, we have a clear look at what BMW calls its most important vehicle ever.

This new model belongs to a group BMW calls "Neue Klasse," which means "New Class." It follows the larger iX3. The SUV is already stealing the show, but many fans have been waiting for the sedan. It is meant to be the electric version of the famous 3 Series. BMW has been testing the i3 in the freezing cold of Sweden, and now that the camouflage is off, we can see that the car looks modern but still feels like a classic BMW.

The front of the car has a new look. BMW changed the famous "kidney grille" to be much thinner. Instead of being tall and chunky, it now stretches across the whole front of the car. Since it's not really needed for cooling, it is just an illuminated part of the new design. The headlights have a "four-eyed" look - a famous style for the brand. It looks clean and simple, which is a big change from some of the busier designs BMW has used lately. The car does not try too hard to look like a spaceship, which will please long-time fans who just want a nice-looking sedan.

On the sides, the i3 has lines that look very sharp and crisp. The door handles sit flat against the body of the car. It still has that curve in the back window called the Hofmeister kink - this is a design detail BMW has used for many years. The back of the car has thin lights that wrap around the corners, making the car look wide and steady on the road.

The new BMW i3 - source: Bimmerpost

Inside the cabin, things look very different from older BMW models. There is a huge 17.9-inch touchscreen right in the middle. Most of the buttons are gone, so you will use the screen or your voice to change the music or the temperature. The steering wheel has a new shape with four spokes. One of the coolest features is the Panoramic Vision display that puts information like your speed right onto the bottom of the windshield. It stretches from one side to the other, so the driver does not have to look down at the dashboard.

The battery is apparently quite large, with a total capacity of 108.7 kWh. BMW says this should help the i3 travel up to 500 miles on a single charge. This is a very long distance and would put it ahead of many other cars on the road today. Of course, this number comes from tests in Europe, so it might change a bit when it gets to other countries, but it is still a very impressive number.

Charging this car will also be very fast. It uses the same 800V system we already know from the iX3 - it can handle up to 400 kW of power. BMW claims you could add 232 miles of driving distance in just about 10 minutes. It will make long trips much easier because you won't have to sit around for hours waiting for the battery to fill up.

We also know about a few different versions of the car. There will be models called the 40 xDrive and the 50 xDrive. The "xDrive" name means the car has power going to all four wheels, helping with grip and speed. These models will compete directly with the Tesla Model 3.

The new BMW i3 - source: Bimmerpost

BMW plans to start building these cars in the second half of 2026. The first units should show up in dealerships in Europe and the United States by late 2026 or early 2027. We do not have the exact price list yet, but we expect to hear those details soon. The new i3 is a huge bet for the company - BMW is moving away from its old designs and putting everything it knows about technology into the Neue Klasse. If the i3 works as well as it looks, it could be the car that finally moves the brand fully into the electric age.

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