5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
We were among the first drivers to get behind the wheel of BMW’s beastly new 644-horsepower, $220,000 plug-in hybrid XM SUV, and we learned some things in the process. Out in the deserts of Arizona, in a vast and treeless expanse of beige, south of the Grand Canyon, north of Phoenix, the new XM stood out. It might as well have been an alien craft, landed on a distant moon. It could slide through the landscape on electrical-power alone, propelled by a large lithium-ion battery. Or, if the driver prefers, the XM could fire up its twin-turbo V8 afterburners and rocket toward the horizon, spitting a glorious, raspy, mechanical howl from quad tailpipes. No doubt, this is a strange BMW; hell, it’s a strange vehicle, but is it for you?
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
There Is A Precedent
There’s never been a BMW XM before, but this isn’t the first time BMW’s high-performance M division has struck out on its own and created a vehicle from scratch. There’s actually a precedent for this.
“If we go back to the early days, every car company that wanted to be someone needed to have a sports car, so that was obvious the choice then,” explained Frank van Meel, a diehard car enthusiast and the chief executive of BMW M. He was referring to the first car developed in-house at M, then known as BMW Motorsport. The 1978 BMW M1 was a wedge-shaped supercar built to go racing, and unlike subsequent M cars it wasn’t based on any existing BMW model. Originally intended as a collaboration with Lamborghini, the Italian company unfortunately went bankrupt just as production was supposed to start. Nevertheless, BMW did build a limited run of M1 supercars, powered by an all-time-great straight-six motor. As the first car to officially wear the M badge, it was out to make a statement, just as the XM is today.
The XM Actually Handles
BMW M fans can be a particular bunch. They come to M for fun cars, luxury cars that make entertainment a top priority, above lap times and pure acceleration. That’s also why we love so many M cars, past and present. Fans who were skeptical whether the XM would handle like a proper M car — you could be forgiven for imagining it was just a cash grab — will be pleasantly surprised to learn that it lives up to the badge on its boot lid. Most surprising of all for a big SUV is that the steering is responsive and tactile. The chassis is agile and finely balanced. The all-wheel drive system feeds most of the power to the rear so drivers get that familiar rear-drive push through bends. It’ll even wag its rear tires if properly provoked.
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
5 Things We Learned Driving the Beastly 2023 BMW XM
How’d M do it? They threw everything at the XM, including what is — as far as we know — the first active anti-roll system powered by a supercapacitor. (It reacts faster than a battery-powered system, thereby doing a better job keeping the car level even during extreme cornering events, as one BMW engineer explained.) The XM also has rear-wheel steering, another first for M. Track-day warriors will still want an M2, or M3, or M4, or even an M5, but now they can also have an M car for big family holidays too.
BMW Targets Benz and Lamborghini
“Nowadays,” explains van Meel, “the biggest segment and the fastest growing segment is SUVs. Within that SUV segment we did not offer something like a G-Class Mercedes or Lamborghini Urus. And there are a lot of customers out there asking us or even begging us to do something like that.” That’s right, BMW’s most deep-pocketed and loyal fans were looking for a palatial family-friendly SUV from M division, something bigger and more usable than the hardcore X5 M and X6 M. And, since BMW didn’t make a vehicle like that (until now, anyway) those fans went elsewhere: Range Rover, Benz, Lambo, Porsche, perhaps the Aston Martin DBX, or Bentley Bentayga. Yes, the XM is double the price of BMW’s also-huge X7 SUV. But when shopping for a mega-SUV, buyers expect to pay $200,000 or more. That’s simply the price of admission into this rarified market.
It Could Be Your Daily Driver
So far, so familiar? Well, the XM has an ace up its wheel arch. It’s true there are plenty of high-power, high-performance SUVs out there. But the XM is one of the very, very few that is also a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). The electric motor sits between the gearbox and engine. What’s more, the XM actually has a very respectable all-electric range of 50 kilometres. That’s based on Canadian NRC estimates; we didn’t have a chance to do a proper range test, but we can confirm that driving the XM in EV mode is wonderful. It’s plenty quick enough for stop-and-go traffic, and will even accelerate up to and beyond 120 km/h on battery-power alone. If you commute, say, 10 or 15 kilometres each way for work, you might not even burn a drop of gas on your daily run— assuming you remember to keep the XM plugged-in overnight. Surprise! This in-your-face luxury SUV has a healthy sheen of social acceptability.
It’s Not For Introverts
“It’s a very outgoing car. That’s why we call it ‘The Rockstar,’” said van Meel. “You want to show yourself to the outside world, and you want to make a statement; it’s more for very extroverted kinds of people,” the boss of M explained.
Make up your own mind on the XM’s design, but it goes and handles like an SUV from M division should. Better, even. It’s certainly not for everyone, but if it is for you, then there really is no substitute.
