The BMW X6 M is going to be getting its inevitable LCI update quite soon. With it will be some new changes to the front end, the interior, and—most importantly—the engine. The updated X6 M was recently seen doing some testing at the Nürburgring and it shows off a bit of its new front end design, while putting its new engine to the test. (We don’t own the spy photos but they can be seen here)
Let’s start up front, as it’s really the only update we can see in these photos. Despite wearing a bit of camouflage, you can sort of see what the new front end is going to look like. Its grille looks pretty similar, with big, angular kidneys. However, its headlights seem a bit slimmer and more modern. We know the X5 is going to get slimmer headlights with its LCI, so it’s like the X6 will too. It’s also going to get a mildly update front bumper, with different air intakes but nothing too drastic.
Unfortunately for these spy photos, the biggest changes are where you can’t see them. Inside the car, the X6 M LCI will get iDrive 8, with the curved screen, along with the updated digital gauge screen. Both are mostly big upgrades over the old iDrive 7 setup but there are some drawbacks. For instance, the move from physical climate controls to touchscreen controls was misguided at best. However, there will also be some other changes, such as the new toggle switch shifter, which looks a bit cleaner than the current shift lever.
However, the biggest change is under the hood. The BMW X6 M LCI gets an all new engine—BMW’s S68, an all-new twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8. It’s unclear how much power it will make in M car spec but it’s like to be around the same. The S68 in M Performance guise makes the same power as the old N63 M Performance engine, so the same might hold true for M cars. However the new engine will feature better throttle response, smoothness, thermal management, efficiency, and hopefully noise.
As far as big performance SUVs go, the BMW X6 M has always been quite impressive. So it will be interesting to see if BMW just…
