Spy Photos: BMW X6 Active Hybrid

X6 ActiveHybrid moves to production, albeit with temporary swelling.

Apparently the eager reception of the X6 ActiveHybrid concept at last year’s Frankfurt show caused it to bump its head in a rush to production. World Car Fans released photos today of a lightly camouflaged pre-production mule fueling up.

The newer, greener X6 will utilize the previously outlined dual-mode ActiveHybrid system, which has discrete modes for high-torque, low speed driving as well as for high-speed cruises. The system uses a modular hybrid system which can be adapted to many different engine/vehicle combinations, as opposed to a design-specific petrol engine/hybrid combination, which sees wider use in the automotive industry. BMW says this innovation allows them to tailor the hybrid system to different applications without diluting the unique nature of the original vehicle. No word yet on if they’re able to attain the stated efficiency gain goal of 20% in this iteration.

The swelling in the bonnet seems to be temporary, as it’s there for testing purposes and not a massive edema as previously thought. World Car Fans has a small gallery of spy shots for your inspection. Their sources indicate a mid-2009 launch for the 2010 model year.

Sources World Car Fans and BMW USA.

RELEVANT LINKS:

World Car Fans article http://www.worldcarfans.com/9080219.028/bmw-x6-activehybrid-spied-with-massive-power-dome

BMW ActiveHybrid system http://www.bmw.com/com/en/insights/technology/efficient_dynamics/phase_2/active_hybrid/overview.html