BMW is boosting its X3 SUV range with a new rear-wheel drive sDrive20i variant which will arrive in Australia in March 2018, priced at $65,900.

It will be the first new-generation X3 with rear-wheel drive and the most affordable of the brandโ€™s four-model range, $3000 less than the diesel-powered and all-wheel drive X3 xDrive20d.

โ€œWe have been strongly encouraged by the X3โ€™s sales performance since it arrived in early November,โ€ BMW Group Australia CEO Marc Werner said.

โ€œWith the sDrive20i, buyers can enjoy all the flexibility of the all-new X3 platform at a sharpened price point.โ€

The new one will have a 135kW/290Nm four-cylinder turbo petrol engine driving the back wheels though an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

Standard equipment will be the same as the xDrive20d with standard 19-inch alloy wheels, three-zone air conditioning, head-up display, business satellite navigation and iDrive6 functionality.

Other features include auto start-stop, cloth/leather upholstery, an automatic tailgate, a leather-rimmed multi-function steering wheel, auto-on LED headlights and wipers, cornering lights and LED daytime running lights, BMWโ€™s

โ€˜Driving Assistantโ€™ with approach control, lane departure and lane change warning and its โ€˜Parking Assistantโ€™ with rear view camera and park distance control.