[Jason]

BIMMERPOST NEWS

First Ever Look at BMW F33 4 Series Convertible Prototype

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For weeks we've been hearing that the F33 4 Series convertible (or 3-series convertible, as BMW has not yet officially confirmed a badge change) had recently begun public testing. And now we can now share with you the spy photos from its first ever sighting! [UPDATED WITH NEW PICS].

As clearly seen, the F33 4 series will retain its folding hardtop. The car is still heavily masked and it appears that it may feature a bit of a false trunk or heavy camouflage on the trunk lid, making it look more extended or larger than the actual design underneath. This is the reason for the odd-looking gap and space in the transition area to the rear lights.

Aside from the roofline, the trunk, and the roof-to-trunk transition, the F33 appears to share similar lines and size with the F32 coupe (prototype pics pictured below for comparison). As always, with prototypes at this early stage of camouflage featuring such bulky camouflage, it's hard to gauge styling aside from size, proportion, stance, and general lines. The round rear lights are of course just temporary lights affixed for testing purposes.

Expected to Grow

Like the F30 sedan and F32 coupe, the F33 convertible is expected to grow a bit in size from their E9x predecessors. To give you an idea, compared to the E90 sedan, the F30 sedan is 3.66 inches longer, has a wider track (1.46 inches more at the front, 1.85 inches more at the rear) and a 1.96 inches longer wheelbase. We wouldn't be surprised to see similar increases for the F32 and F33 over the current generation coupe and convertible.

Judging by the very positive F30 reviews so far however, the increased size will not negatively affect handling or weight. The F30 is lighter than the E90 and we expect the F33 will also tip the scales at a lighter weight than the E93. As for handling, the F30 has been said by reviewers to both handle and ride better than the outgoing E90 sedan.

F33 Schedule

If the timing between the E92 coupe and E93 convertible (early prototype pictured below for comparison) hold true with this next generation F32 coupe and F33 convertible, we would see the F33 convertible hit the market approximately 6 months following the F32 coupe (which is expected in the second half of 2013). This would mean a release of the F33 convertible sometime in the first half of 2014.


Updated photos 12/20/11:



















Photos from 11/20/11:

























F32 4 series coupe for comparison:









Early stage E93 3 series convertible prototype for comparison (from late 2005):

[bmwaddict]

cant wait to see the final result

[wontonbomb]

never been a fan of their hardtop verts...and this hasn't changed my mind.

[ORIGIN M.]

You'd have to own/drive one to understand. The top is a marvel.

Cannot beat dropping 4 side windows w/the top up, and w/it down it simply looks sick.

-At least they might have figured out they needed to loose the stupid broken chrome-line around the side windows.

Originally Posted by iczer34

never been a fan of their hardtop verts...and this hasn't changed my mind.

[pn_e92]

Originally Posted by iczer34

never been a fan of their hardtop verts...and this hasn't changed my mind.

same
I want it to work though

[ORIGIN M.]

Yeah, but look at the bloody hood-line.

I hope it doesn't end up like that.

Originally Posted by parham2652

same
I want it to work though

[tony20009]

It'll be nice when they finally reveal the thing. This piecemeal way of revealing the damn thing is for the birds. I say keep the car covered until it's ready to be fully revealed. Let it be like a Christmas gift; you get to seen it when it opened and it's a secret until then. Period.

Did anyone ever give you a Christmas gift in September so you could take off the bow then. Then come October, here they come back with the gift and you take off the ribbon. Then in November, you get to take off some of the wrapping paper. Then finally, on Christmas day, you get to open it up and see what the fuck it is they've been pestering you with for the past three months. And woe be to the first sucker that tries that with me because if it's not good, I'd have half a mind to shove it down their damn throat!

Right now, the camouflage is doing exactly what it's supposed to:
- The car -- convertible or hard top -- looks like a Mustang to me. Maybe that's part of the plan: keep the expectations low and then nobody'll be disappointed when it comes out lookin' like shit but slightly better.
- The anticipation and excitement, among those who cotton to this sort of thing, grow with each incremental revelation

[DooBs]

my goodness that looks ugly, but after looking at the 93 prototype seems okay
looking forward to the final product!

[Zadjali]

IMO . . . I will wait for the official reveal!

[TheBingoBalls]

camo does a good job more than usual in making it hard to picture what the final product is going to look like. Regardless, pretty interested to see how the 4er is going to come out.

[Glim]

Major swirl marks and ugly tail lights, they really need to work on their paint process and design.

[pn_e92]

Originally Posted by tony20009

It'll be nice when they finally reveal the thing.

I am sure the features and some parts of the design will be very much better with major improvements, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the new body will be better than the current E9X body.

Personally, I HATE THE SQUARED OFF "ANGEL EYES" ON THE F30!!!
I love the perfect circles (or just a little of the top cut off) on my current car.
It's simply beautiful.

At the moment, I would rather have my E92 over the new F30 any day (based solely off looks).

[Piotr74656]

Originally Posted by Glim

Major swirl marks and ugly tail lights, they really need to work on their paint process and design.

Good one!

[mshab356]

Originally Posted by tony20009

It'll be nice when they finally reveal the thing. This piecemeal way of revealing the damn thing is for the birds. I say keep the car covered until it's ready to be fully revealed. Let it be like a Christmas gift; you get to seen it when it opened and it's a secret until then. Period.

Did anyone ever give you a Christmas gift in September so you could take off the bow then. Then come October, here they come back with the gift and you take off the ribbon. Then in November, you get to take off some of the wrapping paper. Then finally, on Christmas day, you get to open it up and see what the fuck it is they've been pestering you with for the past three months. And woe be to the first sucker that tries that with me because if it's not good, I'd have half a mind to shove it down their damn throat!

Right now, the camouflage is doing exactly what it's supposed to:
- The car -- convertible or hard top -- looks like a Mustang to me. Maybe that's part of the plan: keep the expectations low and then nobody'll be disappointed when it comes out lookin' like shit but slightly better.
- The anticipation and excitement, among those who cotton to this sort of thing, grow with each incremental revelation

Tell us how you really feel lol:

Totally agree with you though, hence why I don't bother with these spy photos

[DDS2015]

Just like the E93, I don't like the roof to trunk transition. I will wait until I see the final thing for final judgement though. The E93 never did it for me, but I wonder if there will be an xdrive version for northern climates?

[bavarian19]

Hardtop 4 coupe, but ragtop 6?

[M-Power111]

well im useless in this thread since i hate convertibles dearly however this one im sure will be great cuz its a BMW.

[Bimmerlover76]

I honestly cannot wait. The benefits of the new engine easily outweigh the questionable design choices.

And really, when I get my new 135i or 328i (fingers crossed) this summer, I want my passengers to notice how she drives more than how she looks. And she definitely looks good enough to the point it's a winner.

[ryan970]

must have a huge blind spot with that camo on the window

[eisenb11]

I'm not quite digging this yet. As things appear I'm liking the e93 proportions a lot more than f33. This looks like a huge car on dinky wheels.

[GOLFFRR]

hmm interesting. I will hold judgment when more is revealed. Im excited to see the end result. Also glad to hear its lighter

[M5007]

It's too early to determine. But there is still hope.