BMW is working on updates to its compact 3 Series luxury sedan as evidenced by this prototype – which we’re assuming hides the changes coming as part of its mid-cycle facelift – caught by spies on the streets of Munich this week. It’s almost like they forgot that a bunch of journalists were just in town … or did they?
It doesn’t look like we should expect any dramatic styling updates. That’s great news on its own, as it means the iconic sport sedan will likely not get the controversial, beaver-faced grille that has begun proliferating through BMW’s lineup – at least not immediately.
The bumper appears as though it will be tweaked, however, and we can see new headlight and DRL shapes on the front end and what appear to be similar nip-and-tuck adjustments in the rear. BMW’s simple camouflage makes it difficult to discern much of anything more detailed than that.
Our spies suggest that we could see this update as soon as late next year (likely as a 2023 model in Europe; perhaps an even later introduction in the United States). The G20-generation 3 Series was introduced in 2018 (as a 2019), so that timing tracks with the midpoint of the small sedan’s presumed lifespan.
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