This week, BMW unwrapped the Vision Neue Klasse X idea. If final yr’s Vision Neue Klasse was a glimpse at an all-electric 3 Series sports activities sedan of the long run, the Vision Neue Klasse X is tomorrow’s battery-powered X3.

Like most idea autos, the Neue Klasse X has a minimalist dashboard outlined by a full-width digital instrument panel and a central touchscreen, with hardly any buttons or knobs to be seen. But glimpse the entrance door panels, and also you’ll discover old style seat-adjuster buttons, nearly precisely like what you’d discover in a 30-year-old luxurious automotive.

“As we know, people adjust the seat a little bit while driving,” a BMW consultant informed me on the media preview of the Vision Neue Klasse X in Portugal. “It’s a very intuitive way, without looking to a display, to adjust your seat. This is one of the things where it makes sense to keep these [physical] control elements.”

The Vision Neue Klasse X just isn’t fully touch-free, after all. The X idea features a new multi-function steering wheel, which absorbs the bodily controls that might have beforehand been dealt with by an iDrive knob on the middle console (RIP). BMW says the steering-wheel-mounted controls allowed designers to put the center-dashboard display screen within the best place, making it simply seen with out impinging on the driving force’s view via the windshield.

And whereas the Vision Neue Klasse X presents a button-free dashboard, actuality dictates that the eventual manufacturing model will probably be a bit much less minimalist.

“We listened really carefully to what customers gave us during our customer clinics, and we got that feedback,” a BMW consultant informed Motor1 throughout the Vision Neue Klasse X media preview in Portugal. “We will not have the iDrive controller in the car anymore, I think this is clear. We have that wonderful multifunctional steering wheel and the panoramic vision stage, but for other functionalities we will have knobs where it is necessary. It’s not a knob- or control-element-free car, that’s not our vision.”

When the Vision Neue Klasse X goes into manufacturing, the BMW rep continued, it’s going to characteristic a mixture of haptic-feedback buttons within the steering wheel and bodily buttons elsewhere within the inside. 

“For the most important functions, there will be the right knobs in the right place,” the BMW consultant informed Motor1. “This is still a Vision car, so stay tuned to see how the final version will be.”