It might not seem wildly obvious but BMW isn’t all that different from a teenager in the middle of a questionable phase. From one model to another some of the design concepts seem confused and despite its best efforts at looking bold and brash, it’s not really the cool kid in class anymore. If we made you CEO today, what would you do next?
The new XM Label Red flagship is certainly an aggressive take on what BMW thinks its customers want. With 738 hp (550 kW), it’s the most powerful road car the brand has ever made. It’s also the only one to so proudly point out its gigantic and opinion-splitting (that’s putting it nicely) grilles with bright red trim.
Then there’s the BMW DEE on the other end of the spectrum with its very classic 3 Series proportions. Sure, it’s still got a gaping grille but it’s wider which also harkens back to the old-school cool understated class of the 1980s and 1990s. Unlike the XM, it received largely positive press when BMW dropped the curtain on it early this year.
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Add to this that the German automaker just lost its crown as the top luxury brand in the USA from a sales standpoint in 2022. Tesla didn’t just eek out a win either. It bested BMW by over 100,000 units last year. And it did it with interiors that look like they’re made by Fisher-Price when compared to BMW. So how would you put the blue and white back on top?
Would you stick with the XM styling and move the majority of the brand into that space? Executives at BMW clearly think that shock sells to one degree or another. They’re not completely wrong either.
On the other hand, perhaps going back to basics and relying on classics for inspiration, as in the case of DEE, is the way to take Tesla off the top rung. We have our ideas but you’re the boss. What are you going to do to put BMW back on the top of the podium?