18 June 2001: In addition to its planned 1-series small car and the soon-to-be-released new Mini, BMW plans to build a small SUV, the X3, aimed directly at the Land Rover Freelander, and is also considering a large SUV aimed at the Range Rover end of the market. This follows on the success of its X5 SUV (left), especially in America.

The X3 is expected to be launched in 2003, and will help the marque to reach the million cars a year mark, its target for five years' time. The current annual sales of BMW are around 800,000 units.

A new 6-series coupe and convertible range of big cars is also on track for production. And the company is already working on plans to add a series of Mini derivatives, including a pickup and convertible versions of its retro-styled baby car. TW