BMW reveals angular, aggressive Concept XM
The BMW Concept XM will likely divide opinion with its edgy exterior shape and busy interior design
BMW has shown a new concept car at the 2021 Art Basel Miami Beach show. Called Concept XM, the car showcases a new direction for the company’s M badge, one that is increasingly aggressive and uncompromising in design.
On the outside, the Concept XM is characterised by angular body work, with sharp edges and lines placed here, there and everywhere. The front end appears fairly familiar with the large kidney grille, but the rear is completely alien with the chunky body work above the back window acting like a hood over the glass. It is all far more aggressive than the companies other recent concepts, like the smooth and streamlined Concept i4, or the wedge-like Vision M Next.
The single-lined, sweeping L-shaped rear lights extending from the back wheels are neat and tidy, but stop abruptly in middle of the boot, as if the design team was undecided whether to include a light bar or not. A horizontal line in the body work sits just beneath the boot door, and wraps around the back of the car from wheel to wheel in an attempt to bring some cohesion to affairs.
But despite the almost hostile styling, the Concept XM is a grower. Stare at it long enough and it starts to make a little more sense. And some of the details, like the shoulder line with its glossy black finish and tail pushing up to the top of the rear seat windows, are undeniably well executed.
The aggressive design feel continues on the inside, with a driver-centric cockpit area that features a compact centre console, three vertical rectangular displays for climate controls, and the curved screen unit with a carbon fibre surface and chrome surround. The upper sections of the seats are bulky and bucket-like. Even the door design is confrontational, with the upper and lower sections intersecting as they run at different angles.
In contrast, and in a bid to maintain a sense of luxury, the lower half the seats are cladded in velvet and diamond quilting, while the deep-pile carpet also has a smaller diamond pattern. It is lounge-like, but not in the minimalist, breezy way that other car companies have shown with their concepts.
BMW says the highlight of the cabin is the headliner with its 3D prism pattern, describing it as an “exclusive work of art”. This perhaps explains why the German OEM decided to take the wraps off the Concept XM at the Art Basel show instead of the LA Auto Show.
The XM is set to be introduced as a production car at some point in the near future, with plans to start building the model at the end of 2022. Love it or hate it, the Concept XM undoubtedly shows that BMW is not resting on its laurels, and is keen to keep pushing design in new directions.