Scheduled to arrive in 2028, BMW’s new 1 Series will feature either internal combustion or electric power, with the focus in key markets around the world, reportedly set to be a younger buyer. Compact-car design boss, Oliver Heilmer, described the 1 Series as one of the main pillars of the brand, and such, a new version will be important for the Bavarian manufacturer.

The new model is due to break cover in 2028, following on from the major update received by the 1 Series in 2024 (main and below), and as part of the manufacturer’s comprehensive Neue Klasse product rollout between now and 2029.

As reported by Autocar, 1 Series will crucially retain its classic hatch-like exterior design, rather than adopt the kind of MPV or crossover styling of competitors like the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and the Audi A2 E-tron. There will be hallmarks of the Neue Klasse move, as seen with iX3 and i3 previously, though, but the 1 Series will look a lot more like a hatch than either an MPV or crossover.

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BMW sold nearly 200,000 1 Series cars last year, remaining a key player in European markets like France and Italy, and product boss Bernd Korber reiterated just how important the 1 Series was for the brand. “If you want to be a global player, you have to take care of markets where the share of 1 Series is extremely high,” he said. “If you want to keep the brand young, if you want to develop customers within your portfolio, the 1 Series is very important.”

Heilmer explained that the key feature of the Neue Klasse methodology is more about the mindset of the design team than it is a how to cookbook. “One important aspect behind the Neue Klasse mindset is having strong different characters for each model line,” he said. “So you can expect something entirely different in other models based on the same platform.”

Since the third generation was launched, 1 Series has been available only as a five-door, but there is the possibility (thanks to the new platform underneath), that the three-door could return, but only for the electric version that will ride on the electric-only Gen6 platform.

Key also to the new 1 Series will be the range of powertrains on offer. While the electric i1 uses a bespoke electric platform, the internal combustion versions will use the CLAR platform currently used under 1 Series. That’s where the FWD and RWD variations come in – internal combustion retains a FWD platform, while the electric version uses the RWD focused architecture.

Autocar reports that the petrol versions are likely to retain the 1.5-litre three byliner and 2.0-litre four-cylinder engines, but with addition of plug-in hybrid technology as seen on the 2.0-litre version of the 3 Series. That car can run up to 100km on electric power alone thanks to the 19.5kWh battery pack.

The 1 Series EV is likely to be offered with a single electric motor powering the rear wheels, feature BMW’s latest ADAS technology and run BMW’s latest ‘AI superbrains’ regardless of which powertrain is selected.