BMW X7: A big SUV by America, for America

German carmaker BMW announced the creation of a new range-topping model for its SUV lineup: the BMW X7.

While celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Spartanburg, North Carolina plant, the Chairman of BMW’s board of Management, Dr. Norbert Reithofer, announced the expansion plan for the production line, which builds all of BMW’s SUVs. In addition to the X3, X5, X6 and now the X4, the American plant will be upgraded with new assembly lines to build the upcoming X7.

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The vehicle will be based on the X5/X6 platform, but it will have a longer wheelbase to accommodate a third-row of seats. The large SUV will then be able to sit seven passengers in relative comfort. The X7 will probably offer the same engines as the X5, which are either a six-cylinder turbo mill developing 300 hp, a more powerful twin-turbo V8 boasting 445 hp, or an efficient diesel inline 6 with 413 lb-ft of torque. A plug-in hybrid is also in the works. All the X7 models will be sold with all-wheel drive.

The new vehicle will be in competition with other large SUVs like the Mercedes-Benz ML and the Range Rover. While the X7 will be offered worldwide, BMW expects that a large percentage of the total production will be sold in America, since we are big consumers of this type of vehicle.

The Bavarian automaker will invest more than a billion dollars in the renovation of the Spartanburg plant, which will create 800 new jobs in the next 2 years. Total production should increase from 300,000 to 450,000 during that same period.