BMW’s direct competitor to the likes of Mercedes GLS, upcoming Audi Q8 and the Range Rover is taking shape and it will be the biggest SUV the Bavarian company has ever produced. Courtesy of the designing chaps at OmniAuto, we could get a preview of what the all-new X7 will be like with a speculative rendering.
The full-size crossover, not an estate, was affirmed to be put into production a couple of years ago and it looks like in another two years it will go on sale in the international markets. BMW currently works on the next generation X5 SUV and it will sit on the Cluster Architecture (CLAR) that also underpins the current 7 Series flagship sedan.
Rumours spreading on the internet suggest that BMW is speeding up the new X5 development, which is only on its third year of lifecycle, to bring the X7 as quickly as possible. Given the ubiquitous popularity for large and luxury crossovers everywhere, it would only make sense we reckon. The Munich-based company will position the X7 on top of the new X5 and both models will be commanding the X range.
It will share components and design cues with the smaller X5 and the 7 Series while believed to offer more cabin luxury than the range-topping sedan itself. The platform in which BMW will utilise to construct the X7 is rear-wheel drive based and internally the development of the model has been codenamed as ‘BMW F17’.
The production version is expected to be rolled out from the brand’s manufacturing unit in Spartanburg, USA by early 2018. It will compete in the flagship luxury crossover segment against the likes of Lexus LX570, Cadillac Escalade, Lincoln Navigator, Audi Q8, Range Rover and the Mercedes GLS.
Initially, the X7 will be available as a seven-seater SUV and along its life cycle an ultra luxury model with four individual seating configuration is expected. Rear occupants will have separate massaging function, individual touchscreen infotainment system with audio and navigation, etc.
It is more likely to have the biggest engine in the company’s stable as the 6.6-litre V12 engine could be borrowed from the 7 Series. In the lower variants, six and eight cylinder petrol and diesel engines taken from the X5 are also said to be under consideration. The birth of an iPerformance plug-in hybrid version is of high possibility.
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