The BMW X7 (A.K.A barbecue grill) will not be getting THE ‘M’ treatment
Rumours suggest that an X8 M will join the BMW range of vehicles, and more interestingly, this X8 M will be a standalone model
The BMW X7 was unveiled in 2018 and from that day to now, one of the most constantly asked question is ‘does it have such a humongous grille? Obviously, I am kidding. The question has been whether the X7 will get the “M” treatment and understandably so because the German automaker provides an M variant for almost all its models.
The simple idea of a gargantuan three row X7 being offered in an M trim would be near perfect. Can you imagine an X7 with its advanced attributes, luxurious interiors, M based features and a monstrous sporty engine, it would be the whole package. Most automakers follow by launching an even more luxurious version of their full-size 3 row SUVs like the Merc GLS Maybach. I don’t even think that is needed.
Clearly, WE DO NOT need more SUVs and we’d rather like to see a beefier engine for the extravagant money charged. But, I get it, the profits on those luxurious ones are higher and people will blindly pay for the appeal of it without even looking at their money’s worth. Do people at that price point even care about money’s worth? Probably not. And probably that’s why it seems that a BMW X7 M will remain a dream as per some recent information from BMW Blog. BTW! We are talking about the proper M variant and not those puny M sport trims. However, if you are really bent on getting a fire breathing X7, then I would ask you to have a look at the 2021 BMW Albina XB7.
The Albina XB7 by no means is replacement for a ‘M’ variant, but Albina has worked hard on the XB7, and it shows, it really does show. The XB7 uses an Albina tuned 4.4 litre twin turbo V8, and this engine produces a mind blowing 612 ps and 590 pound feet of torque. To touch the 60 mph mark, the XB7 takes just 4 seconds, and its speed is electronically capped at 180 mph (289.68 km/hr).
To give you some context, the range topping X7 has a total horsepower of 523 ps, and this makes me feel that if both of them were put against each other, the XB7 would leave the X7 in the dust. With the X7 M being out of the picture, eyes would soon turn towards the X8, more specifically the X8 M, and rumours suggest that the X8 M will be a standalone model. What does that mean?, Well, this would mean that the X8 M would be built from scratch by BMW’s M performance division.
Until now we had seen the X4 M share more or less everything with the X3 M and the X6 being a coupé version of the X5. Unlike these vehicles, the X8 M will be its own SUV, without sharing any attributes with any BMW SUV. This would make it an ultra performance SUV and also the most powerful SUV offered by BMW. Apart from this, the X8 will not only be the biggest SUV offered by BMW, but the biggest SUV amongst its German rivals.
For now, the best performance suv is the Albina XB7, and if the X8 M really means business, then BMW would have to make sure that the X8 M trumps the XB7.
P.S – Once released, the X8 M will be the most expensive vehicle offered by BMW.
