BMW surprised everyone in November 2021 with the reveal of the aggressive Concept XM. Get ready for the next production version with largely the same polarizing design, including the love/hate split headlamps we recently saw on the new Series 7 and X7 facelifts. This edgy SUV, available exclusively with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, is the first standalone M product since the original M1 was discontinued in 1981.
As you know, it’s far from a direct successor to the mid-engined coupe as XM wants to cash in on the SUV craze. It’s positioned above the X5 M / X6 M Competition and X7 M60i without looking like those models, for better or for worse. Everything is great about the M division’s partially electric mastodont, including 23-inch wheels with 275/35 R23 front tires and 315/30 R23 rear as standard equipment. Or, you can optionally go down one size.
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It did have two laps behind as a throwback to the M1 but this is pretty much where the similarities end. Like all complete M cars, the XM has a quad exhaust system, only this time with stacked tips to make the sporty luxobarge stand out. Impressive wide taillights complement the muscular body and flank the prominent XM badge with gold contours to echo other exterior details.
The first M product with a PHEV setup features a charging port on the front left fender, which will be the same story as the next generation M5. Under the hood, BMW has installed its new S68 engine, a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 with mild hybrid technology. The combustion engine itself produces 483 horsepower at 5,400 rpm and 479 pound-feet (650 Newton-meters) of torque from just 1,600 rpm.
Integrated into the eight-speed automatic transmission is an electric motor, producing 194 hp and 207 lb-ft (280 Nm). With the power of the two combined, the XM offers 644 hp and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm). The electric punch allows a 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) run in 4.1 seconds or 4.3 seconds to sprint to 62 mph (100 km/h). The ultimate M SUV is electronically limited to 155 mph (250 km/h) from the factory, but adding the M and BMW Driver Packages will loosen the limiter to 168 mph (270 km/h).
The e-motor takes its juice from a lithium-ion battery pack with a usable capacity of 25.7 kWh. The XM will hit 87 mph (140 km/h) in electric mode, and BMW estimates a full charge will last for 30 miles (48 kilometers) based on EPA testing procedures. In Europe, this super SUV named after the 1990s Citroën model has a WLTP rating of 82 to 88 kilometers (51 to 55 miles).
At 6,062 pounds (almost 50:50 distributed), the XM is the heaviest production BMW ever built. That shouldn’t come as a surprise considering it has a massive V8 engine, electric motor, and an in-vehicle battery with more than generous dimensions: 5,110 millimeters (201.2 inches) long, 2,005 mm (78.9 inches) wide and 1,755 inches tall. mm (69.1 inches). While the 3,105 mm (122.2 in) wheelbase is identical to the three-row X7, the XM can only accommodate five people.
The Concept XM’s interior isn’t flamboyant, but you get a two-tone theme reminiscent of last year’s showcars featuring Vintage Coffee Merino leather teamed with Soft Nappa leather. The headliner incorporates no less than 100 LEDs for a luxurious light effect based on the selected driving mode. This fast SUV uses the latest iDrive 8 and features a heads-up display as standard while offering the widest range of driver assistance systems BMW has ever installed.
The XM will enter production before the end of this year at the Spartanburg plant in South Carolina. Pricing starts at $159,000 (plus $995 destination and handling fees), but a more expensive version will be released next year. Known as the XM Label Red, the first of a series of BMW Label models will enter limited production in mid-2023 with over 735 hp and 735 lb-ft (nearly 1,000 Nm) of power. Price? From $185,000. For your money’s worth, BMW will provide you with custom paint, wheels, upholstery and interior trim pieces.
With the XM, the BMW M marks its hybrid revolution as the M2 and 3.0 CSL arriving in the coming weeks will be the last M products to be powered exclusively by a combustion engine. The mechanically linked next-generation M5 and all other full-fat M vehicles with inline-six engines and the V8s that arrived after that would embrace electrification to some degree.
