BMW Debuts New-gen Panoramic iDrive System at CES 2025, Production Begins Late 2025
Powered by the new Operating System X, the next-gen Panoramic iDrive system will be featured in all upcoming BMW vehicles starting later this year, substituting many traditional physical controls with haptic buttons and touch-sensitive interfaces.
By Reetika Bhatt
At the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show, BMW unveiled its cutting-edge Panoramic iDrive system, the latest iteration of its iDrive technology. Powered by the new Operating System X, this system will be featured in all upcoming BMW vehicles starting later this year, substituting many traditional physical controls with haptic buttons and touch-sensitive interfaces. Frank Weber, Board of Management Member, BMW AG said, 'High tech meets highly intuitive operation – a quarter of a century of pioneering work and technological leadership in operating concepts has been channelled into the new BMW Panoramic iDrive. The foundations are provided by the new BMW Operating System X. With this advance, we are giving one of the world’s best and most comprehensive infotainment systems even greater capability and once again setting the industry benchmark in multimodal interaction. Starting with the first series-produced Neue Klasse model at the end of this year, the new BMW Panoramic iDrive will form an integral part of all future BMW models.'
BMW Next-gen Panoramic iDrive System: The Features
The new iDrive system from BMW is built around four key features: a Panoramic display at the windshield’s base, a 3D head-up display, a redesigned central touchscreen, and an updated multifunction steering wheel. The Panoramic Vision system acts as a pseudo-head-up display, projecting crucial data onto a black surface located at the lower edge of the windshield. This wide display spans the dashboard and provides vital information at the driver’s eye level, with customisation options available through the central touchscreen. The optional 3D head-up display sits above the Panoramic Vision, projecting additional information, including navigation and driving system data, directly onto the windshield.
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The central touchscreen adopts a more angular form, breaking away from the traditional rectangular shape, and uses matrix backlight technology. The premium German carmaker emphasises that the new operating system enhances user experience by allowing seamless content transfer to the Panoramic Vision display with a simple swipe gesture. The new multifunction steering wheel features a vertical two-spoke design, differing from the horizontal layout seen in current BMW electric vehicles.
The horn area is surrounded by two wing-shaped extensions that house controls for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and other in-car features. These buttons offer haptic feedback, illuminate based on the available functions, and feature a textured surface for easier identification by touch. The brand has also replaced several physical controls with haptic buttons, including those for window de-icing, windshield wipers, volume, exterior mirrors, gear selection, and turn signals.
The updated OS X provides greater customisation compared to earlier systems and supports a wider range of languages for the intelligent virtual assistant. This innovative iDrive system will debut in BMW’s Neue Klasse models, starting with a new SUV this year, followed by a new version of the 3 Series in 2026.
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