Photo: RM Car Design
Like any other manufacturer, BMW works on a pretty clear policy regarding the periodicity of its major design changes for a model. The X5 SUV (or SAV, as the Bavarians like to call it, just to be different) is now in its third generation, but all of them have been just evolutions of the previous one, the last more than any. It's time for a revolution.
In later years, it's safe to say that BMW has become a very conservative company design-wise. Sure, it's developed the i sub-brand that came up with two special vehicles (the beautiful i8 and the weird yet strangely appealing i3) that push the boundaries and allow the designers to flex their creativity muscles, but other than that, we haven't really seen anything truly moving coming from Munich.
On the other hand, Mercedes-Benz seems to have found a good mojo, and it surely is exploiting it to the max with all of its latest models looking strikingly similar to each other. Elsewhere, Audi is still stuck in the copy/paste loop while Lexus does seem to be trying way too hard to catch the public's eye. So, where is BMW going with its future car designs?
If the new 7 Series, the latest significant model released by BMW, can be considered relevant, we'd say they are still playing safe, reserving the experiments for the low-volume "i" range. However, this is only the second 7 Series after the curvy model penned under Chirs Bangle, so the limousine isn't at the same life-stage as the X5 SUV.
That being said, we still think the rendering proposed by RM Car Design looks more like a concept than a real production car. Those really thin headlights are too i8-ish, and at the same time make the X5 look very much like the Maserati Levante, if it weren't for the very different grilles. Speaking of grilles, they will probably follow the 7 Series recipe and grow, while the headlights are definitely going to be touching them, but we doubt BMW will opt for such an eminently sporty design for its SUV.
The new X5 - which, by the way, is still a very long time away, the current generation not having received its mid-life facelift - will be using the same CLAR modular architecture as the 7 Series, a platform that will be underpinning most of BMW's future mid and large models. With the new, slightly larger X3 and a confirmed X7, the X5 might be reshuffled a little and turned into a sportier vehicle, since it's hard to imagine the full-sized X7 raising any claims in that area.
Moving on to the rear of the car, the changes here are less drastic. The overall shape of the taillights remains more or less the same, but contrary to what the front would have you expect, they're actually made less aggressive. There's a certain Mercedes-Benz feel to the back end of this X5 rendering, and that's probably down to the chromed blade linking the two taillights. But since the new 7 Series has it as well, strapping it on the split tailgate of the future X5 makes perfect sense.
RM Car Design's effort is purely speculative, and since we're at a point where there have been no camouflaged cars or even mules spotted, anything goes. It remains to be seen how bold BMW is going to be with the design of the new X5, but we sure wouldn't mind if it turned out looking like this. At least the front end.
On the other hand, Mercedes-Benz seems to have found a good mojo, and it surely is exploiting it to the max with all of its latest models looking strikingly similar to each other. Elsewhere, Audi is still stuck in the copy/paste loop while Lexus does seem to be trying way too hard to catch the public's eye. So, where is BMW going with its future car designs?
If the new 7 Series, the latest significant model released by BMW, can be considered relevant, we'd say they are still playing safe, reserving the experiments for the low-volume "i" range. However, this is only the second 7 Series after the curvy model penned under Chirs Bangle, so the limousine isn't at the same life-stage as the X5 SUV.
That being said, we still think the rendering proposed by RM Car Design looks more like a concept than a real production car. Those really thin headlights are too i8-ish, and at the same time make the X5 look very much like the Maserati Levante, if it weren't for the very different grilles. Speaking of grilles, they will probably follow the 7 Series recipe and grow, while the headlights are definitely going to be touching them, but we doubt BMW will opt for such an eminently sporty design for its SUV.
The new X5 - which, by the way, is still a very long time away, the current generation not having received its mid-life facelift - will be using the same CLAR modular architecture as the 7 Series, a platform that will be underpinning most of BMW's future mid and large models. With the new, slightly larger X3 and a confirmed X7, the X5 might be reshuffled a little and turned into a sportier vehicle, since it's hard to imagine the full-sized X7 raising any claims in that area.
Moving on to the rear of the car, the changes here are less drastic. The overall shape of the taillights remains more or less the same, but contrary to what the front would have you expect, they're actually made less aggressive. There's a certain Mercedes-Benz feel to the back end of this X5 rendering, and that's probably down to the chromed blade linking the two taillights. But since the new 7 Series has it as well, strapping it on the split tailgate of the future X5 makes perfect sense.
RM Car Design's effort is purely speculative, and since we're at a point where there have been no camouflaged cars or even mules spotted, anything goes. It remains to be seen how bold BMW is going to be with the design of the new X5, but we sure wouldn't mind if it turned out looking like this. At least the front end.
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