The “G09” will likely go down in history as the internal codename for one of the most controversial BMWs. This is how the engineering team refers to the XM, a plug-in hybrid SUV with a striking design and a colossal price tag. Unlike any other X model before it, the electrified mastodont has inevitably fallen into the hands of aftermarket specialists eager to customize the M beast.

AC Schnitzer has taken a crack at modifying the XM and they’ve given it a discreet body kit albeit the vehicle itself is anything but subtle. Front canards on a street-legal car are not necessarily our cup of tea, especially on a vehicle as large as this fullsize SUV. The German tuner also installs a chunky spoiler lip at the front and a roof-mounted rear spoiler to muscle up the M brute further. In addition, the diffuser gets extra vertical fins, flanked by the original stacked exhaust tips.

The XM is now more along the lines of an extra-large hatchback rather than an SUV since AC Schnitzer has lowered the vehicle by 25 millimeters (1 inch). It has swapped out the OEM wheels in favor of its own 23-inch set with a two-tone look or an all-black finish, contrasted by the red brake calipers lurking from behind. The new alloys come wrapped in meaty 295/35 ZR23 front and 335/30 ZR23 rear tires.

Images of the interior have not been supplied but we do know the tricked-out BMW XM makes extensive use of aluminum. It covers not only the accelerator and brake pedals along with the footrest but also the shift paddles and even the rotary knob of the iDrive controller.

It wouldn’t be a complete tuning package without some mods underneath the imposing hood. AC Schnitzer upgraded the regular XM with the V8 engine, which is positioned between the inline-six XM 50e and the more powerful XM Label. The midlevel variant pictured here makes 644 hp and 800 Nm (590 lb-ft) from the factory but the tuner has worked its magic to unlock 740 hp and 900 Nm (664 lb-ft). Bear in mind these output figures take into account the electric motor.

AC Schnitzer follows other tuning companies that have worked on the XM, such as Manhart, Renegade Design, Mansory, and Larte Design.

Source: AC Schnitzer