They were probably a little disappointed to see BMW’s limited color palette for the IX3. Apart from everyday shade made of black, white, gray and silver, there is only a handful of real colors. This Blue Ocean investment looks good, just like Feuerrot/Vegas Red and Eucalyptus Green, but the brand new electrical SUV certainly deserves a larger splash of color. Fortunately, a larger selection of colors is on the move.
We dug a little and found that the new IX3 will actually receive individual treatment from the middle of next year. BMW has not announced what colors it will offer, but at least we know that they are coming. In the meantime, Frozen Space Silver will be available at the start, followed by Frozen Ocean Wave Blue. It is worth clarifying that these matt surfaces are not part of the individual catalog.
The future availability of special colors confirms that BMW has designed its DEBRECEN factory with individual colors right from the start. The Hungarian system has a paint shop that can spray 30 vehicle body per hour in a fully automated process. If the IX3 proves to be popular, the shop has additional capacities to edit more cars.
The paint shop over 33,000 square meters over three floors is the first in the BMW group that runs entirely without fossil fuels. The IX3 will only enter series production in November, but the facility has been in operation for over a year. First, BMW tested it with IX1 bodies before switching to IX3 “Na5” prototypes.
Debrecens Klacker held leaves the old method for nasted scenery in favor of environmentally friendly dry separation. Overspray is captured with limestone powder, which reduces the water consumption and energy requirement by running the cabin to 90% recirculated air. Only 10% require heating and humidification instead of everything. Even the used powder has a second life in the cement industry instead of ending as a contaminated waste water.
After an investment of more than 2 billion euros, the new Hungarian plant will have an annual production capacity of 150,000 units. At the moment, only the IX3 is being built there. It is worth noting that the electrical SUV for the US market will still come from Debrecen, even after BMW will be started in the Potosà factory in San Luis Potosà in Mexico from 2027.
