BMW XM Spotted At An Airport With Less Camo, Lots Of Grille

When the BMW Concept XM came out, it stunned onlookers with its massive grille, its highly angular design, and its teenie-tiny headlights. Now, new photos from an airport suggest that the production vehicle will continue to stun onlookers.

Posted to Instagram by user wilcoblock, a close-to-production prototype can be seen with less camouflage than ever. That highlights the fact that, yes, the grille will be enormous and the rest of the design will be nearly as in-your-face.

Admittedly toned down slightly from the Concept XM, this version features many of the same design cues promised by its forebear. Take, for example, the vertically stacked tailpipes, the wide angular haunches, the twin BMW roundels at the top of the rear window, and the snarling hood that follows from the massive grilles.

Read Also: BMW’s 750-HP Concept XM Revealed And It’s Even Scarier Than We Imagined

 

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It may not be quite as extreme as the concept, but it will certainly be a statement piece for the company, which has divided opinions with its recent design.

Inside, meanwhile, more is hidden away, but this does appear to have a two-tone color scheme, with blue leather near the armrest and a more brickish color on the A-pillar. The steering wheel, meanwhile, features two M buttons, as is common for the brand’s vehicles.

At launch, those buttons will control a newly-developed V8 with electric assistance that makes 644 hp (480 kW / 653 PS) of power and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm) of torque, the brand recently revealed. That will be followed by an even more powerful version that makes 738 hp (550 kW / 748 PS) and 737 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque, as promised in the Concept XM.

The plug-in hybrid powertrain won’t just be for power either, because it will get up to 50 miles (80 km) of range on the WLTP cycle and 30 miles (48 km) on the EPA cycle.

Production of the XM will begin in December 2022 and it is expected to be fully unveiled this year as part of the celebrations surrounding the 50th anniversary of BMW M GmbH.