BMW X7 May Get Ultra-Luxurious Variant

Rather than sit idly by and watch its rivals target well-heeled buyers with new, upmarket SUV models, BMW is now expected to join the fray with an ultra-luxurious version of its upcoming X7 full-size SUV.

The X7 is expected to be launched on the market in late 2017 or early 2018 as a rival to the Cadillac Escalade, Mercedes-Benz GLS and Land Rover Range Rover—vehicles that currently sit at the upper limit of luxury when it comes to SUVs—but an even plusher version is being mulled to target a new range of ultra-luxurious SUVs coming from Bentley, Mercedes-Maybach and even BMW’s own Rolls-Royce brand.

“As a company, we are open-eyed and we are having a close look at our competitors and this is where we are really dealing with it in an intelligent way,” BMW interior design chief Oliver Heilmer told Drive when quizzed about the possibility of an ultra-luxurious X7. “From a design perspective, any new concept is attractive from our point of view and every niche could be something new.”

The Australian publication reports that this plush X7 would likely ditch the SUV’s regular second- and third-row seats and replace them with just two ‘executive’ seats offering acres of legroom, reclining and massaging functions, and the latest technologies at hand. Such a design already features in Volvo’s XC90 Excellence sold in China, and it’s likely a rumored Mercedes-Maybach version of the next-generation GLS will come with such a design.