Is BMW Going To Build An Electric Crossover To Rival Tesla’s Model X In South Carolina?

A new report indicates BMW is working on an electric crossover to rival the upcoming Tesla Model X and an already confirmed Audi Electric Crossover that will be previewed this year.

Autonews Europe cites German publication Wirthschaftswoche, which reports that an “iSUV” would not be built alongside the BMW i3 and i8 in Germany, but in the company’s center for its Sports Activity Vehicles, Spartanburg, South Carolina. That plant in the U.S. is BMW’s largest in the world and the center for the X3, X4, X5 and X6 production.

While the thought of Spartanburg receiving another vehicle production investment to build more SUVs likely delights the state’s governor, Nikki Haley, the South Carolina plant just received a $1 billion investment last year to build the upcoming BMW X7, a three-row, gas-powered rival for the Mercedes-Benz GL and Audi Q7.

But the idea BMW would add something more SUV-like to its i brand makes sense, given Audi’s commitment to its own electric crossover in 2018 and the comparisons that draws to the imminent Tesla Model X. Audi says it will preview that EV in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, according to Automotive News Europe.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, the electric luxury crossover contest is heating up.