BMW is pulling the plug on 3 Series production in Mexico just seven years after the first G20 rolled off the assembly line. When the San Luis Potosí plant opened in 2019, the seventh-generation 3 Series was the first model built there, making the sedan a particularly important part of BMW’s Mexican manufacturing story. Now, with the G50’s arrival, the luxury sports sedan is moving somewhere else.
From November, BMW will build the combustion-powered G50 in Dingolfing, Germany. It’s also the first time the conventionally powered 3 Series won’t be produced in Munich. A company spokesperson told Automotive News the decision to pull the 3 Series out of Mexico was made some time ago and isn’t related to the tariff ordeal.
That makes the G20 something of a Mexican one-generation wonder. San Luis Potosí was designed to be flexible, and BMW has used it to build the 3 Series for global markets. The factory has been exporting cars to roughly 80 markets worldwide.
San Luis Potosí Is Saying Goodbye To The Car That Started It All
The timing is particularly interesting because BMW had previously made the Mexican plant a major 3 Series production hub. After the 2022 facelift, BMW said it would produce U.S.-bound 3 Series models exclusively in San Luis Potosí. However, we later learned some cars still came from Munich.
Looking ahead, San Luis Potosí is being transformed into one of BMW’s Neue Klasse production sites. Starting in 2027, it’ll build the iX3 and i3, both based on BMW’s new dedicated platform with Gen6 batteries and motors. The company is investing €800 million in the transformation, including €500 million for a new battery assembly facility.
There’s also a neat bit of symmetry here. The San Luis Potosí plant started production with a 3 Series, and it will eventually build an i3, the electric sedan that BMW is positioning as the next-generation interpretation of the 3 Series formula for the EV age. The nameplates are different, but the connection is obvious, as even BMW says the i3 is a 3 Series.
2 Series And M2 Production Continues In Mexico
BMW’s Mexican factory won’t be short of work, either. Alongside the i3 and iX3, it continues to build the 2 Series Coupe and its M2 counterpart. Both are expected to soldier on until the end of the decade. What comes after that is unclear, but we’re holding out hope for another generation of the rear-wheel-drive 2er. As for the other 2 Series, the front-wheel-drive minivan, the Leipzig-built Active Tourer will be retired at the end of its second generation.
In 2025, the San Luis Potosí plant in Mexico assembled 95,525 vehicles, up 0.3% from the previous year. Despite a 6.1% drop, Dingolfing was far busier, with 279,553 vehicles rolling off the assembly line. The German site is responsible for considerably more models, though: the 4 Series, 5 Series/i5, 7 Series/i7, and iX. The 8 Series was retired earlier this year, and the iX may follow suit in a couple of years.
As for Munich, it’ll switch exclusively to electric vehicles at some point in 2027. It means that workers are preparing to say goodbye to the 4 Series as well.
Source: Automotive News
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
