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At the Annual General Meeting of BMW AG in Munich, the chairman of the board of management let it slip the all-new X5 will go official “later this year,” following the rollout of the X3, X2, and X4. Harald Kruger’s statement cements previous reports on the arrival of the fourth-generation SUV.
The successor of the F15 will transition to the CLAR vehicle architecture, translating to weight savings for every engine option in the range. The automaker’s assembly plant in Spartanburg has geared up for CLAR-based sport utility vehicle production ever since the third-gen X3 started rolling off the line in June 2017.
The coupe-styled X4 will be built there as well, and so will the X7 starting in late 2018 for the 2019 model year. On the one hand, making the switch from F15 to G05 five years after the introduction of the former means that BMW will skip over the Life Cycle Impulse. But on the other, keeping the F15 on life support would have been a step back for BMW in the eyes of well-informed customers.
As far as engine options are concerned, inline-six and V8 options will prove most popular with customers. The X5 M will churn out in the ballpark of 600 horsepower from the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 we know and love from the F90 M5. As for the eco-friendly crowd, looks no further than the plug-in hybrid 7 Series (740e iPerformance) to get an idea about what’s in the offing.
In addition to the G05, Kruger let it slip the “8 Series range will feature at least six models, including the BMW M8 Gran Coupe.” It’s not that hard to understand how the head honcho came up with this number considering that the 8 Series will be available in three body styles (Coupe, Convertible, Gran Coupe), with all of them confirmed to get the M8 treatment.
The coupe-styled X4 will be built there as well, and so will the X7 starting in late 2018 for the 2019 model year. On the one hand, making the switch from F15 to G05 five years after the introduction of the former means that BMW will skip over the Life Cycle Impulse. But on the other, keeping the F15 on life support would have been a step back for BMW in the eyes of well-informed customers.
As far as engine options are concerned, inline-six and V8 options will prove most popular with customers. The X5 M will churn out in the ballpark of 600 horsepower from the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 we know and love from the F90 M5. As for the eco-friendly crowd, looks no further than the plug-in hybrid 7 Series (740e iPerformance) to get an idea about what’s in the offing.
In addition to the G05, Kruger let it slip the “8 Series range will feature at least six models, including the BMW M8 Gran Coupe.” It’s not that hard to understand how the head honcho came up with this number considering that the 8 Series will be available in three body styles (Coupe, Convertible, Gran Coupe), with all of them confirmed to get the M8 treatment.
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