So, what does the future hold for BMW M? How will they differentiate themselves from the competition once we’ve all abandoned ICE cars? BMW M CEO, Markus Flasch, tried to shed some light into the topic during a recent interview held with Australian journalists. Of course, he had to be quiet about details and specifics as a lot of cars are currently in production but he didn’t hesitate to confirm that we’re just a few years away from seeing the first M cars with hybrid or fully electric powertrains.

As you can see in the video below, Flasch said that “We will see the first battery electric M car performance model ready later this year, we will see high-performance hybrid variants pretty soon, and we will see high-performance battery electric vehicles in a couple of years.” We expect that high-performance hybrid to be the rumored BMW X8 M.

BMW’s 3.0 liter straight-six B58 engine and its high-performance alternative, the S58, will most likely be some of the last to go out of production. Our sources tell us that the upcoming 7 Series will use them in its most potent versions, joined by various electric motor configurations. That means, the B58 and S58 will keep being made for at least 5 to 8 years and will probably get some technical upgrades over time.

BMW clearly wants to keep all choices on the table and that’s something Flasch pointed out as well in the interview: “As in the past, we offer the best propulsion technology for the use case,” he said. “We don’t have all-wheel drive in all of our cars, we don’t have V8s in all of our cars, we have diesel-powered M Performance cars as well, so there is a whole variety today and we will see this also in the future.”

As for what the electrified M cars will be offering, it’s pretty obvious that the BMW division will not be looking for straight line performance first and foremost but rather superior dynamics: “Longitudinal performance is something that has never been the single purpose of M, and even less so with electrified cars.

With battery electric vehicles initial acceleration and longitudinal performance is something pretty much everyone can do. And this is not what we are working on, we are working on ultimate driving dynamics. The M cars we will put on the road, the electrified M cars, will show that this is the future.”

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A combination of a V8 petrol engine and electric motors at both axles will give 750 horsepower to the X8 M, along with a massive 737 lb-ft of torque – nearly 1,000 Nm. Naturally, the power will be sent to all four wheels, as you’d expect in a high-performance BMW SUV. With those power levels, the BMW X8 M is likely to run the standard sprint in the 3 seconds range.

The top version of the X8 M will be joined by an M Performance hybrid – BMW X8 M45e – which will be using a 3.0 liter inline-six cylinder engine paired with an electric drivetrain. The current PHEV drivetrains deliver 286 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque from the six-cylinder petrol unit, while the electric motor has a rated output of 113 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque, gains of 2 hp and 9 lb-ft. Total power output: around 394 horsepower and 442 lb-ft of torque.

It’s likely that the X8 will deliver a bit more oomph and longer electric driving range, considering BMW’s continuous advancements in the field.

Design wise, the X8 has always been rumored to be a more luxurious model than the X7, with a more bespoke finish for the discerning customer looking for the ultimate luxury. It will also be more expensive than the X7 and will most likely become the priciest car with a BMW roundel on you can buy.

The new range-topping BMW X8 M model would be conceived as a competitor to the likes of the Audi RS8, the Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 and the Porsche Cayenne Turbo. And we believe it will deliver the highest power output in any BMW car today.

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