BMW X3 Cargo Test: How Big Is the Trunk?

written by James Riswick^{Edmunds Contributor
James Riswick has been testing cars and writing about them for more than 20 years. He was the senior reviews editor for Autoblog and previously served multiple editor roles here at Edmunds. He has also contributed to Autotrader, Car and Driver, Hagerty, JD Power and Autoguide Magazine. He has been interested in cars forever; his mom took him to the Toronto Auto Show when he was 18 months old and has attended at least one every year since (OK, except in 2020). He owns a babied 1998 BMW Z3 in James Bond blue and a 2023 Kia Niro EV.}
edited by Steven Ewing^{Director, Editorial Content
Steven Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. In that time, he's written thousands of articles and tested just as many vehicles. Steven is Edmunds' director of editorial content and has previously been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET, and was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. Steven has also contributed to Automobile magazine, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, Porsche Panorama, and dozens of other publications. In his spare time, Steven loves to play the drums, cook, and drive his 2000 BMW M Roadster.}
6/2/2025
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The 2025 BMW X3 has 31.5 cubic feet of cargo space behind the back seat.
That’s a very good amount for a luxury compact SUV.
Our real-world test shows how much it equates to actual luggage.

I'm eventually going to talk about the BMW X3 and how much stuff fits in its 31.5-cubic-foot cargo area. But first, I must discuss spare tires. Remember how they used to be in everything? And then remember how a little thing called run-flat tires were invented and automakers started using these supposed modern marvels while removing spares in the name of weight, packaging and, possibly, cost? BMW was an early and extreme adopter of run-flats, much to the chagrin of ride quality enthusiasts and the wallets of owners who needed to replace them.

Why am I talking about this? Well, a few years ago, it seems like BMW decided that spare tires were OK after all and started putting them back into its cars, at least as an option. The last-generation X1 and X2 were the earliest two examples I can remember. You could either have a spare tire or a big spare-tire-sized underfloor storage area. (That's the case with the current generations, too.) I'm guessing this move was popular because the X3 eventually got a spare tire option. Unfortunately, the previous-generation X3 was not originally engineered to have one, so to make a spare fit, engineers awkwardly raised the floor, creating a stage-like space. See below.

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It looked like that, or roughly similar to what Toyota does with the 4Runner's hybrid battery. Note that the stage only came with the spare tire. As a result, the BMW X3 had two different cargo capacities behind the back seat despite only one official volume spec of 28.7 cubic feet.

OK, now let's get to the new one.

This is the current BMW X3's cargo area, which has grown to 31.5 cubic feet. I suspect that much of the gain results from the new, boxier rear. Oh, and it doesn't have a stage.

It does, however, have a spare tire. And not only that, it's now standard. Sweet. I guess BMW finally got tired of customers griping about a lack of a spare. Good.

This is the cargo cover, which is similar in design to the one found in the BMW M5 Touring. It's a roll-out cartridge-style one that is surprisingly and impressively lightweight. Per usual, I planned to test with and without the cargo cover.

Let's get to the bags. Here's some nice boilerplate information about their dimensions. There are two bags you'd definitely have to check at the airport: Big Gray (26 inches long x 16.5 inches wide x 12 inches deep) and Big Blue (26 x 16.5 x 10). There are three roll-aboards that usually fit as carry-on: Medium Tall (24 x 14 x 9), Medium Wide (23 x 15 x 9) and the smaller Green Bag (21 x 14 x 9.5). Finally, there's everyone's favorite Fancy Bag (21 x 12 x 11), a medium-size duffle.

This is a great result. All my bags fit and there was enough space to store the cargo cover on board, thereby negating the need for with/without testing. Excellent.

This was not possible in the last-generation X3 with the spare tire (I did not test one without the spare/stage). One of my roll-aboard bags needed to stay behind. All the bags did fit with the cover out with some room to spare, but we're talking about a pair of duffel bags extra.

Speaking of extra stuff, what else can today's X3 manage?

This is all my bags plus my 38-quart cooler (23 x 16 x 13). I tried a duffel bag in the upper right, but visibility disappeared, so that was a no-go.

Again, this is a great result for a compact luxury SUV and is consistent with other SUVs with a cargo volume of 31.5 cubic feet.

It is also, basically, one 38-quart cooler better than the smaller BMW X1 could manage. The X1's cargo test result was basically equal to the last-generation X3 with the spare/stage. The new X3's result is also slightly better than the Mercedes GLC and far better than the Audi Q5 and Genesis GV70. The Acura RDX is better (it has a spare tire and underfloor storage), and I strongly suspect the Volvo XC60 is at least equal (I didn't attempt cooler placement).

Either way, the BMW X3 has one of the largest and most useful cargo areas in the segment. Oh, and did I mention it has a spare tire?

by James Riswick

James Riswick has been testing cars and writing about them for more than 20 years. He was the senior reviews editor for Autoblog and previously served multiple editor roles here at Edmunds. He has also contributed to Autotrader, Car and Driver, Hagerty, JD Power and Autoguide Magazine. He has been interested in cars forever; his mom took him to the Toronto Auto Show when he was 18 months old and has attended at least one every year since (OK, except in 2020). He owns a babied 1998 BMW Z3 in James Bond blue and a 2023 Kia Niro EV.

edited by Steven Ewing

Steven Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. In that time, he's written thousands of articles and tested just as many vehicles. Steven is Edmunds' director of editorial content and has previously been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET, and was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. Steven has also contributed to Automobile magazine, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, Porsche Panorama, and dozens of other publications. In his spare time, Steven loves to play the drums, cook, and drive his 2000 BMW M Roadster.

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BMW X3 Cargo Test: How Big Is the Trunk?

The new X3 is far better than its predecessor, and it has a standard spare tire

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