BMW XM Label Red REVEALED with 738bhp and a whopping £171k price tag

The BMW XM Label Red arrives to top the new XM offerings, with even more divisive looks and 738bhp on tap. Costs £171k.

It’s a sign of how much things have changed over the years when BMW revealed the first Hybrid M – and the first dedicated M car in a generation – as a whopping great plug-in hybrid SUV – the BMW XM – rather than as an appealing sporty saloon.

Previewed by the XM Concept, the production XM fell somewhat short of the promise of the concept with a mere 644bhp – 100bhp down on the concept – but BMW has now put that right with the arrival of this, the BMW XM Label Red.

That means the XM Label Red comes with a more powerful version of the XM’s 4.4-litre V8 now producing 577bhp and 553lb/ft of torque, with the PHEV electric motor still with 109bhp and 207lb/ft of torque but with a new pre-gearing stage which boosts torque output to 332lb/ft – presumably for launch control.

It all adds up to a usable 738bhp and 738lb/ft of torque, cutting 0-62mph to 3.8 seconds and promising EV range of up to 52 miles powered by the XM’s 25.7kWh battery.

BMW has even managed to add to the Fugly looks of the XM on the Label Red with lots of Toronto Red highlights around the front grille and side windows, and even more red highlights on the Label Red Edition. Inside it’s much the same as a regular XM.

BMW is offering a 500-car run of the Label Red Edition (no news on how many are coming to the UK or prices), but a ‘regular’ XM Label Red will cost you £170,860, with production starting in August.