Lipstick on a Pig: High-performance BMW XM Label Red breaks cover

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Let it never be said the moneyed One Per Cent let good taste stand in the way of busting up a few norms. BMW introduced its XM SUV last month, a plug-in hybrid machine with polarizing looks and a sky-high 644 horsepower. At the time, mention was made of a Label Red model, intended to pack extra ponies and be the first in a series of XM Label trims.

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Lipstick on a Pig: High-performance BMW XM Label Red breaks cover Back to video

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And, boy — is it red.

Appearing on the Instagram page for BMW M, it is clear the XM Label Red won’t be a car for wallflowers. Leaning heavily into the brand’s current penchant for enormous grilles, stylists have chosen to outline the (illuminated!) kidneys with a splash of red paint, creating a look not unlike when someone decides to apply a thick layer of red lipstick before hitting up the bars on George Street. A streak of scarlet mascara also encircles the side windows where matte black or bright work would normally reside.

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But if the Label Red’s appearance isn’t up your alley, perhaps its power output will help you turn a blind eye. This special model will is said to crank out over 735 horsepower and 735 lb-ft of torque. Those are huge steps above and beyond the workaday XM, which makes a paltry (not really) 644 ponies and 590 lb-ft of twist.

It is not immediately clear which half of the XM plug-in hybrid powertrain – the V8 engine or electric motor (or both!) – are being tweaked to belt out all these extra horses. At stock levels, they produces 483 and 194 horsepower, respectively.

BMW is touting the XM as packing the first plug-in hybrid from its M skunkworks arm, with power channeled to the road via an M-fettled xDrive all-wheel-drive system. A variant of the BMW M Hybrid V8 will go racing in IMSA next year at venues including the mighty Daytona Speedway. The following season, it will power BMW M Motorsport’s return to the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The BMW XM itself is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2023, with the Label Red expected to begin production in the summer of that same year. It is expected to have a sticker price of US$185,000 in America, so a price tag north of $200,000 is certainly not out of the question when this beast arrives in Canada.