0ne down, one to go. This is the year in which two blue-blooded brands dispense with tradition and launch their own SUVs. Controversial? Just a touch. That said, we've now driven Ferrari's Purosangue and found it to be profoundly good - although the presence of an 8250rpm 6.5-litre V12 always helps. That leaves the BMW XM. This is M division's first bespoke car since the mid-engined M1 of 1978 and one that M CEO Frank van Meel says offers the best of X and the best of M. Hence the name.
This is also M's very first hybrid, and its plug-in powertrain will resurface in the next M5, possibly with even more power and torque. Even for this initial application, it gives a heady 644bhp and 590lb ft.
A low-slung 29.5kWh battery grants an electric-only range of 55 miles. It feeds a 148bhp electric motor integrated into the ZF-built eight-speed automatic gearbox. The rest of the output comes from M's phenomenally strong 'S68' twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 an engine that will realise more of its potential when the 738bhp XM Label Red arrives. That will ensure M's new baby outshines even the Aston Martin DBX 707 - an SUV so monstrously over-endowed that they put the figure in its name.
But yeah, all right. We can't stall forever. The fact is that none of the above, fascinating as it is, will get tongues wagging (or, I suspect, orders flowing) anything like as effectively as how the £148k XM looks. Even in images, this beady-eyed SUV is pretty challenging to behold. But in the metal it's brutal, almost shockingly unapologetic, which is exactly as M intended. I'm struggling to remember the last time a car maker went quite so far down this road. Tesla Cybertruck?
Bu hikaye Autocar UK dergisinin March 22, 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Autocar UK dergisinin March 22, 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Poster car that went from rusty to trusty
One evening, two years ago, George Pappas was being driven down his local high street by a mate and mulling over whether to replace his Mk4 Golf diesel, a recent purchase that was boring him to death, when his girlfriend, also in the car, spotted an old BMW 3 Series at the side of the road with a 'for sale' sign in the window.
THE SEVEN-SEATER THAT VOLVO DARE NOT KILL OFF
The current-gen XC90 has been on sale since 2015 for good reason
GENESIS ELECTRIFIED G80
Where the story begins, in the Hyundai premium marque’s luxury saloon
LEXUSLBX
Can you shrink premium quality to fit an SUV this small? We now know
Rolls boss ready to 'define the next chapter'
Nine months into the job, Rolls-Royce CEO and car guy Chris Brownridge tells STEVE CROPLEY what he's learned and where the firm's heading
Once more, with feeling
AC Cars' recreation of the classic MkII Cobra is at first glance a faithful facsimile of a 1960s performance benchmark. SIMON HUCKNALL drives it
MERCEDES-BENZ CLE
Does a PHEV set-up work in a coupé that exudes such old-school vibes?
ANALOGUE SUPERSPORT
Lotus Elise specialist uprates 1990s icon with an eye on track days
ALPINE A290
The hot hatch is alive and well, and living in France. On both road and track, there's much to savour`
UK HANGS ON TO OLD CARS
Average car age climbs as high prices dampen demand for new models