Being late to the party in the automotive industry is hardly ever a good thing, and when it comes to beefed up wagons, BMW have so far behaved as if they had no idea a party was being held in the first place.

Back in the day, it was just Audi and Volvo bumping heads with their A6 Allroad and XC70. But then, the German automaker decided to also build a more capable version of the A4 Avant, which was unveiled nearly 10 years ago at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show.

Since then, only Mercedes have looked to follow the same recipe, creating the E-Class All-Terrain, which still makes for a very rare sighting in traffic – it was unveiled towards the end of 2016 in Paris.

So what’s BMW waiting for? Well, they might be of the mindset that an offroad-focused wagon isn’t something that would fit in with their “ultimate driving machine” philosophy, but then again let’s face it, neither do any of their non M-powered crossovers.

Thankfully, designer Aksyonov Nikita came up with a little something that shows us what could have been had BMW entered the rugged wagon game with their F30 3-Series model, both in saloon as well as in estate form. Dubbed X-Cross, these variants feature body cladding and superior ground clearance compared to their real-world counterparts.

Of course, it’s the Estate/Touring model that would make the most sense. If it actually existed, we reckon it could take a bite out of the A4 Allroad’s profits. At the same time, it might turn some people away from models such as the X1 or the X3.

All things considered, would you like to see BMW build a direct rival for either the A4 Allroad or the A6 Allroad?