480 kW BMW XM just a glimpse of things to come

Meet the BMW XM, a car that offers a glimpse into what the future of M will represent.

The key markets for this SUV will be China, the US and the UAE. If you understand that, then you will understand the styling of the XM.

It’s not subtle and it is not meant to be.

This is an SUV that is all about being noticed. Did The Citizen Motoring like it? Not in any classical sense, but we get what it is trying to do.

There is a ton of technology onboard the BMW XM that would take a chunk of cyberspace to explain.

So, we are going to concentrate briefly on the powertrain and drive we experienced at its recent launch. Because all the next-generation BMW M cars are going to offer some sort of electrification.

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Electrified powertrain

The M Hybrid drive system in the BMW XM produces 480 kW of power and 800 Nm of torque. This comes courtesy of a 4.4-litre turbocharged V8 petrol engine being combined with a battery-powered electric motor.

This heady concoction is delivered to all four wheels via eight-speed M Steptronic transmission in a fuss-free manner. You can control the urge with two M Mode buttons and three operating modes; Hybrid, Electric and eControl.

A 0 to 100 km/h time of 4.3 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 275 km/h is on offer when making use of petrol and electricity.

If this 2 700 kg BMW XM can haul like this, can you imagine how quick the future M cars are going to be?

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Big price tag

What really makes starts to make even more sense is that the 25.7 kWh battery offers you around 80 km of petrol-free cruising up to 140 km/h.

It can be recharged up to 80% from the petrol engine while driving or completely charged at a charge point

You are still looking at an extravagant R3 400 000 motoring statement that offers the latest in BMW M technology.

But when presented with these numbers, it’s hard to argue that this is not the future of high-performance motoring that is still mixed with a little bit of a petrol soul.

BMW XM Red Label

On sale from the first quarter of 2024, South Africa will be getting five of 500 BMW XM Label Red models.

This will be the most powerful road-legal series-produced car in the history of BMW M GmbH.

It will have a system output of 550 kW and 1 000 Nm generated by the combination of a combustion engine and an electric drive system.

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