Photo: Stefan Baldauf / SB-Medien
How much is too much? When it comes to cookies and BMW utility vehicles, the answer is “never enough.” After years of speculation and polarizing opinions about the X8, a prototype of the coupe-styled X7 has been photographed at the Bavarian automaker’s technical center in Munich with camouflage from head to toe.
First things first, take a look at the side profile. The party starts from the B-pillars back, and everything from the roofline to the rear quarter windows is designed to make the X8 more appealing than the X7 on which it’s based. The front- and rear-end pictures don’t reveal much other than headlights and taillights that haven’t been finalized for production. However, there’s a bit of an elephant in the room.
“Hybrid Test Vehicle” stickers and a charging port on the front fender leave little to the imagination of expecting customers, more so if you notice the aluminum radiator hiding behind the radar sensor in the lower front grille. The X7 may not be available as a plug-in hybrid, yet the X5 can be specified as the xDrive45e PHEV.
Like the 745e luxury sedan, the mid-size SUV with the eco-friendly engine option develops 389 horsepower (394 PS) and loads of torque thanks to an e-motor and a 3.0-liter six. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lists a driving range of 31 miles (50 kilometers) for the gentle giant, but don’t forget that the X8 is a larger and heavier utility vehicle. Unless BMW doesn’t improve the efficiency of the drivetrain or battery capacity, then don’t get your hopes up.
Like the X7 M that BMW hasn’t confirmed yet, the X8 M may go plug-in hybrid as well. Internally known as Project Rockstar according to Car Magazine, this drivetrain combines a twin-turbo V8 with an e-motor for combined ratings of 750 horsepower and 737 pound-feet (1,000 Nm).
Look forward to the all-new X8 launching in 2021 as a 2022 model.
“Hybrid Test Vehicle” stickers and a charging port on the front fender leave little to the imagination of expecting customers, more so if you notice the aluminum radiator hiding behind the radar sensor in the lower front grille. The X7 may not be available as a plug-in hybrid, yet the X5 can be specified as the xDrive45e PHEV.
Like the 745e luxury sedan, the mid-size SUV with the eco-friendly engine option develops 389 horsepower (394 PS) and loads of torque thanks to an e-motor and a 3.0-liter six. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lists a driving range of 31 miles (50 kilometers) for the gentle giant, but don’t forget that the X8 is a larger and heavier utility vehicle. Unless BMW doesn’t improve the efficiency of the drivetrain or battery capacity, then don’t get your hopes up.
Like the X7 M that BMW hasn’t confirmed yet, the X8 M may go plug-in hybrid as well. Internally known as Project Rockstar according to Car Magazine, this drivetrain combines a twin-turbo V8 with an e-motor for combined ratings of 750 horsepower and 737 pound-feet (1,000 Nm).
Look forward to the all-new X8 launching in 2021 as a 2022 model.
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