BMW's Festival of Flagships

XM BRINGS THE DRAMA BMW's new flagship SUV adds excitement to the luxury SUV space 

- Afzal Rawuther 

BMW launched the XM plug-in hybrid at Rs. 2.60 crore (ex-showroom) at its inaugural Joytown event in Delhi. The XM sits at the very top of BMW's lineup and is the first M model with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. It combines a 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 engine with an electric motor good for a combined total output of 653PS of power and 800Nm of torque. The petrol engine accounts for 489PS, mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox and as you'd expect from a large BMW SUV, power is sent to all four wheels using the M-tuned xDrive system. There is an even more powerful version of the XM, the Label Red, with 748PS of power and 1000Nm of torque that is expected to arrive in international markets late next year.