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First Spyshots of All-New BMW F.A.S.T.

As times change, so do policies of companies, thought unchangeable over the years. For BMW, a couple of things seemed to be forever part of the Bavarian company's DNA: rear-wheel-drive, the Hofmeister kink and the front kidney grilles.
BMW F.A.S.T. Spyshots 7 photos
Photo: Automedia
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However, life proved that many things can change, and a car's design is an easy thing to alter. Since we live in a day and age when driving gets less and less entertaining and more practical, even BMW had to adapt.

A study showed that most BMW drivers actually didn't know that their cars were RWD and all they cared about was the premium feel and name of their car. That proves that fewer people really enjoy what BMW strives for with each model, as time goes by.

To address that issue, BMW announced that it will be launching front-wheel-drive cars that will still have the premium feel of a Bavarian vehicle but will be more focused on practicality rather than performance.

That's where the next generation UKL platform steps in. It will spawn 12 to 15 new models in BMW and MINI line-ups and is to make its debut with the Mk3 MINI, in November. However, we're already seeing other models testing the platform already.

One of them is the so-called BMW F.A.S.T. According to our spy photographers, the car in the image is the future FWD Bimmer, extremely similar to the present-day X1, a car that will use the UKL platform and have up to 7 seats.

However, we saw another car a while back that was also claimed to be the FAST concept, but looked completely different. It was more in the likes of the 1 Series GT patent images we saw, similar to the Active Tourer Outdoor Concept.

A recent report done by BMWBlog, claims that the upcoming X1 will have front wheel drive. In that case, we might be looking at the next-generation X1 right here. Judging by the looks, this version seems more plausible, but we can't be sure at the moment.

The thing is that the X1 was launched in 2009 and, even though it is running on an old platform, launching a new model in a year, is too soon for BMW standards. Furthermore, the car behind it is a BMW E46 3 Series and the prototype looks a lot bigger compared to the older sedan, hinting at a F25 X3 size.

One thing however, gave us food for thought. Will the new models borrow the eDrive platform also? We think so. After all, it was incorporated in the X5, new cars will surely support it.
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