BMW XM Red Label revealed as firm’s most powerful road car yet

BMW has announced a new high-performance ‘Red Label’ version of its large XM SUV, which arrives as the firm’s most powerful car to date.

The XM was revealed last year as BMW’s performance ‘M’ division’s flagship model, and is a particularly controversial model because of its size and brash looks. Pairing a 4.4-litre V8 engine with an electric motor, the standard car is hardly lacking in performance, putting out a combined 644bhp and 800Nm of torque.

But BMW has managed to build on that with its new ‘Red Label’ version, which gets a more powerful V8 engine that takes the combined outputs up to a monstrous 738bhp and 1,000Nm of torque. This allows for a 0-60mph time of just 3.6 seconds (half a second less than the regular XM) and a top speed limited to 155mph, though this can be raised to 180mph as part of an optional package.

The electric motor and 25.7kWh battery largely remain unchanged, with BMW claiming an electric range of up to 52 miles when the battery is fully charged.

To set the Red Label apart from other XM models, a Toronto Red colour scheme is widely used, including around the window frames, badges and 22-inch alloy wheels. The red theme continues to the interior, too, with the top half of the leather seats being trimmed in the colour, while red is used around the air vents and for the stitching.

Production of the BMW XM Red Label will begin in the autumn, with first UK deliveries expected before the end of the year. Prices start from a steep £170,860, which is £22,000 more than the standard XM model.