BMW Launches X5 M and X6 M Countdown Microsite
Site shows a shipping container with a clock counting down the time to launch
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Comments (14)
sub39h
so first they hire the world's worst lead designer to make cars that pushes half their demographic into Audis and Mercs, and then they sell out the only part of their brand that actually stands for purity and put the M bagde on an SUV - in the middle of an economic downturn where SUVs aren't seen as cool nonetheless!
i'm loving BMW's business plan. it means that more people will buy Audis and Mercs and my retinas won't have to be scarred by the monstrosities they call cars
March 5, 2009 1:39 pm
tom43
Can?t follow your argumentation. Are the other BMW M-models going worse after presentation of the X-models? Are there no high-performance-SUV?s from Audi or Mercedes? Do you know the sales figures of the M GmbH in 2008?
March 5, 2009 2:22 pm
sub39h
the point is that if it's making compromises on some of it's own beliefs then how long before this filters down to the M3 or M5?
AMG and quattro DO make performance SUVs, but they don't go against the fundamental principles of the brand. for starters, M cars have never been automatics, but SUVs don't sell as manuals so it's going to have to be a 2 pedal transmission. the DCT won't be able to harness the torque that these cars will have to put out of they're to be even REMOTELY fast enough, and the SMG is useless and everyone knows it so they'll probably revert to a torque converter auto. in another brand that's not an issue. for an M car, it is.
M engines have also always been high-revving naturally aspirated jobbies. but let's be honest, a high strung, low torque engine isn't going to cut it in a vehicle weighing 2.5 tonnes, is it? so that'll probably go out the window (not to mention that trad auto boxes can't usually handle high revs.)
and yes, sales of M cars may be up in 2008, but that's because they were still riding the crest of the first half of the year. this year i doubt the figures will be the same.
the thing is, i don't like companies selling their brands short like that. i hated it when Porsche released the Cayenne for example. ok fine, it doubled Porsche's annual sales and as a result the 911 is a better car, but that tells me that Porsche is just a car manufacturer, not the maker of truly exotic automobiles that one should aspire to. it makes them ordinary, and in the car market that's probably one of the worst things you can do.
March 5, 2009 3:25 pm
afterace2
hahah, i was actually hoping this container is what they are going to unveil
March 5, 2009 8:47 pm
NardoW12
Although the economic is down but there are still tons of people who can easily afford a car at this level. Mercs and Porsche having been pushing hard on high performance SUVs, so why can't BMW M do that?
Personally, I think as long as BMW don't price these 2 cars at an outrages price, they will sell well. I would say 20-25% more than a well optioned X5 4.8i is acceptable. Just like the price of a well optioned 335 and a M3.
March 5, 2009 2:55 pm
Mike.F1
Yay! 2 cars the world desperately needs... can you remember how you got around from A to B without the X5 M??
March 5, 2009 2:56 pm
eddiecoaster
Why an X5/X6 M, but no M7? Why isn't there an OEM BMW to compete with the S8, S63, S65, Quattroporte?
March 5, 2009 3:02 pm
RS5
That's what the Alpina B7 is for. It's not an M, but still considered a product of BMW.
March 5, 2009 8:27 pm
Lamborghini
That is a question I have been struggling to understand for quite a while now.. And I must say that I agree with Sub39h. Mercedes and Porsche have had their performance SUVs for quite a while now,so that cant be an argument for BMW introducing these models in such economic conditions as we are experiencing right now. I mean even Porsche is introducing a Diesel Cayenne,not a new Cayenne Turbo RS with 600hp..
March 5, 2009 3:23 pm
tom43
BMW is just completing its line-up. Development of these cars started long before the financial crisis. And for sure there are still many people out there, which can buy and drive such a car, e.g. in eastern countries.
Another info: the new engine?s rev limit is at 7.500 rpm.
March 5, 2009 8:41 pm
Kalos
I know that once the cars are unleashed to the public,the critics will crawl back into their cold dark holes. Let BMW make M SUV cars besides they've already proven and actually poneered SUV's that drive like cars.
March 6, 2009 4:59 am
