It was in May last year when BMW revealed the first sketch of the iNext crossover. As promised, the Bavarian carmaker also took the wraps off the “Vision Vehicle”, or what is usually called a concept vehicle, later the same year. Now though, BMW has released some photographs of the near-production iNext prototypes undergoing winter trial tests at Arjeplog, Sweden. Predictably, they are heavily camouflaged. But they do give away one or two important design cues to picture the finished product.

First of all, it has a crossover silhouette and if placed right next to an X5, the iNext can’t carry the SUV tag for sure. Why did we say an X5 and not an X3? That’s where our second observation comes in. The iNext looks longer than the X3 and should be at par with the X5. The sloping roofline gives the iNext a comparatively aerodynamic design which should pay its dividend in the ‘travel range per charge’ department.

So, why Arjeplog? The tiny town in northern Sweden is home for winter testing to not just BMW but several other carmakers from around the globe. The Bavarians are putting the iNext through the same set of trails across varied altitudes, terrains and temperatures as they do with their conventionally-powered models. In Arjeplog, the idea is to test how well the all-new powertrain is gelling with the all-wheel-drive as well as the model-specific suspension setup and then fill in any gaps if found.

Some of the other major areas under scrutiny during trials includes the steering and braking system, energy recuperation, Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), electric motor, the high-voltage battery, powertrain cooling system and BMW’s eDrive energy management system. The sub-zero climatic conditions will have an impact on how the energy storage system recharges, how electricity is fed to the electric motor, how electricity is supplied to the electrical system and how the heating and air condition systems respond.

The tag iNext won’t found on the finished product, which should start rolling off BMW’s production line in Dingolfing from 2021. It will actually carry a similar name to the likes of the i8 and the i3. In the coming months, expect BMW to release more footage of the iNext being pushed to its extreme limits in other parts of the globe as well.