BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo ceases production, no successor due

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BMW has ceased production of its 3 Series Gran Turismo with no direct replacement on the cards, as the model is removed from price lists for 2020. 

With bosses originally claiming demand for the model is still at the desired levels, the decision to ditch the model is instead part of a major cost-cutting efficiency drive.

The hatchback version of its best-selling executive saloon was launched in 2013, and sold alongside the saloon and Touring estate variants of the 3 Series. A revised version was launched in 2016.

BMW launched a new 3 Series saloon last year, with a Touring version following that, but BMW chairman Harold Krüger confirmed that "there won't be a successor" to the current 3 Series GT in a statement accompanying an interim financial report.

Designed to combine the looks of the saloon with the practicality of the Touring, the GT was longer and wider than both those variants, with greater interior space. It was offered in the UK only with all-wheel drive. BMW's ever-expanding range of SUVs, offering a similar mix of extra space and a higher-driving position, was likely a factor in the decision not to replace the model.

The move was one of a number of cost-cutting measures being undertaken by BMW that Krüger listed as part of his statement. The firm is making the moves to save more than €12 billion (£10.1bn) in costs.

Other cost-saving measures include reducing up to half of BMW’s current drivetrain variants by 2021, enabled by the firm’s shift to two new flexible platforms, reducing complexity in vehicles and shortening the development process for new vehicles by up to a third.