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Next-Gen BMW 1 Series Rendered as the Sleek Hatchback the Current One Isn't

The BMW 1 Series lost half its appeal when the Bavarians decided to give up on the rear-wheel-drive architecture and go for a more conventional front-wheel-drive one.
BMW 1 Series (i1) rendering 157 photos
Photo: Giorgi Tedoradze via Instagram
The move didn't exactly come out of the blue. One of the industry's best-known anecdotes says that a survey among BMW 1 Series owners from a few years ago revealed the vast majority of them didn't even know their car was RWD. So while we might sit here crying over the loss of the last driver-oriented compact hatchback, the actual buyers couldn't care less.

In fact, they might even welcome the increased interior space, the absence of a tall transmission tunnel that made the middle rear seat virtually unusable, and the improved performance during wintertime. So what if the steering isn't as responsive as before, or the handling through the bends less intuitive than it used to be? It's not a sports car, so the people who buy are much more interested in its practical features than its dynamic performance. Hence, the company's decision to go FWD had no negative impact on sales.

However, what might put a dent in BMW's figures is the apparent sabotage carried out by the manufacturer's design department. Some of the new models coming off the company's drawing boards have looked questionable at best. We thought the i3 was the worst the Bavarians could ever do, but the iX electric SUV proves we were so very wrong. And then there's the 4 Series with its bulky grille, messing up what has always been one of the carmaker's most beautiful models.

One might hope this is nothing more than a brief spell, but have you seen the latest on the upcoming 7 Series? It doesn't look good, not at all, both literally and figuratively. We only have a few spy shots and unofficial renderings, so we may end up eating our words when BMW unveils a stunningly beautiful limousine sometime next year. Still, given everything we've seen from the Munich-based company lately, that's a serious doubt.

Well, if BMW makes it seem unlikely, one independent designer proves it at least isn't impossible. Granted, he doesn't ply his view on the larger 7 Series but the 1 Series hatchback we talked about earlier, yet the aesthetic improvements he brings are undeniable.

Not only does the 1 Series imagined by Giorgi Tedoradze look better, but it also falls in line with most of BMW's current trends. Well, the fact it ignores the most important of them, the overgrown grille, is probably why Giorgi's design looks so good, but his take looks so much better even when you compare it to the current model.

The author doesn't offer any additional information, but a few details suggest we're looking at the next i1, the electric version of the company's hatchback. The solid grille, as well as the charging port on the front left panel, are the two giveaways. With BMW determined to offer electric versions for all of its models, whether we'll get a battery-powered 1 Series with the model's new generation is not even a doubt.

Perhaps the more diminutive size of the 1 Series will convince BMW to spare it from the huge grille pandemic affecting the rest of its range and pen its next generation something closer to what we see here. On the other hand, that might just be wishful thinking.

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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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