BMW rumored to produce 3-Series and iX3 EVs in Mexico in 2027

BMW's $1 billion assembly plant in Mexico could become the automaker's first dedicatedelectric vehicleproduction center,media reported.The company will begin production of the next-generation 3-Series electric sedan and iX3 electric crossover at its San Luis Potosi plant in Mexico in 2027, with production of the iX3 electric crossover due in 2027, a person familiar with the matter said. Production of the 3 Series electric sedan will begin in the second half of the year.

In April of this year, foreign media reported that BMW planned to transfer some production of the X3 to Mexico.The X3 crossover is BMW's best-selling model in the U.S., where the company sold 204,658 X-Series models last year, a 55 percent increase from five years ago.By comparison, overall U.S. sales of luxury light trucks rose about 24 percent over the same period.

BMW Chief Executive Oliver Zipse said last month that the company would build the crossover in Mexico, but did not disclose specific plans."Mexico is going to play a big role in our overall plan," Zipse said in an interview. "Because the demand for the X-Series is very high, at some point you'll see us make the X-Series in Mexico."

BMW's San Luis Potosi plant in Mexico opened in 2019, producing the g asoline-powered BMW 2 Series and 3 Series sedans.

Image credit: BMW

The timing of BMW's production of the 3 Series and iX3 electric cars in Mexico will coincide with its major product changes.BMW will build the new 3 Series model on the Neue Klasse (New Class) electric platform.Zipse said last month that the Neue Klasse platform would play a key role in growingsalesof BMW's electric vehicles, "representing a huge leap in technology."Zipse said the Neue Klasse platform will feature a new generation of electric drivetrains "with higher power output, new battery chemistries and battery formats".

Like otherluxury carrivals, the BMW Group is accelerating its move towards an electrified future.BMW expects that by 2030, at least 1 in every 2 cars the company sells will be fully electric."I think we'll be able to get there even a little earlier," Pieter Nota, head of BMW Group sales, said last month. "We're working hard with our colleagues in production to drive this growth."

A BMW spokesman declined to comment on future production plans.