BMW XL Label: Subtle Was never An Option

Images by Hayden Povey

There are angry SUVs and then there is the BMW XM Label. The former tends to apologise for their size by trying to look athletic or vaguely restrained. The latter makes no such effort. It arrives like it already owns the road and the minerals beneath it. Vast, square-shouldered, ostentatiously illuminated and absolutely certain of its own importance.

Finished in Carbon Black metallic and sitting on truly massive 23-inch 923M bi-colour wheels, my test car looked less like something you drive to the nightclub in and more like something that would acquire it by nefarious means. Even stationary, it carried the sort of presence that makes Range Rover SVRs reconsider their life choices.

The XM Label is not like your standard BMW M-badged car either. In fact, it is rather significant. This is the first standalone M Car – in the historical meaningful sense – since the iconic M1. And it also happens to be the most powerful road-going BMW ever produced. In Label form it now develops 738 horsepower and a frankly unreasonable 1,000 Nm of torque, courtesy of a 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 working in tandem with an electric motor. 0–62 mph is dispatched in 3.8 seconds. I’ll just let that settle.

Early examples of the XM Label appeared as the limited ‘Label Red’ launch edition, finished with distinctive red exterior detailing and restricted to 500 cars worldwide. The car you see here represents the broader XM Label specification that followed – mechanically identical, just without the red lipstick flourishes. Although there is no production cap with the XM Label, I still felt a certain obligation not to reduce the number of functioning examples during a spirited and rather soggy week around Oxfordshire.

Mind you, if I did prang it, you might not actually notice given the number of oblique angles already present. BMW’s recent design direction has been, to put it kindly, conversational. Enlarged air intakes, even more enlarged kidney grilles and detailing that occasionally appears to have been approved at volume. What I can agree with though, is that the XM Label takes all of that and simply turns the dial further clockwise.

The illuminated “Iconic Glow” grille is unapologetic. The front lighting arrangement is layered and angular. At the rear, slender light bars stretch across a darkened glass panel, framing stacked hexagonal exhaust outlets that look more architectural installation than mechanical necessity. It is not subtle, it is not retro and it is not trying to please everyone.

At a glance, the XM Label can feel overwhelming. It is wide (2,235 mm including mirrors and long at 5,110 mm). But something curious happens after a few days. You acclimatise.

The proportions begin to make sense. The vast grille balances the height. The black detailing reduces the visual bulk. The 23-inch wheels, enormous though they are, anchor the car convincingly. What initially feels excessive gradually begins to look deliberate. You may not fall in love at first sight. But after a while you begin to respect it. And respect, in this segment, carries weight. Quite literally.

2,795 kg is not something you ignore. Physics certainly does not. BMW’s M Adaptive Suspension Pro and M Sport differential work diligently behind the scenes to disguise it and in faster corners, the XM does feel improbably composed. There is grip in abundance and body control that genuinely defies expectation. You sit high, yet the centre of gravity feels far lower than the dimensions suggest.

However, the weight is there. You sense it under very hard braking and during rapid directional changes. It is not clumsy, far from it, but it does not shrink around you like a Urus or a DBX (which, incidentally, requires a further six figures to achieve similar theatre). It cannot, nor should it pretend to. The XM Label is rapid. It is capable. But it is not delicate.

At higher speeds, particularly on smoother A-roads or motorways, it settles into an impressively refined stride. Wind noise is minimal, the cabin well insulated and the drivetrain remarkably polished.

At lower speeds, on poorly maintained British surfaces (and Oxfordshire has no shortage of those) the ride can feel firm. The large 23-inch wheels, wrapped in low-profile rubber, transmit rather than absorb imperfections into the cabin. There is a noticeable tautness at urban pace.

But I forgive it all the moment you do step inside. Any lingering doubts evaporate like morning mist over the Cotswolds, because the XM Label knocks much of the competition into a cocked hat when it comes to outright cabin theatre and comfort - particularly if you are fortunate enough to be sitting in the rear.

Look upwards and it reminds you once again that this is not an ordinary M car. Instead of a conventional headlining or a glass roof, BMW fits a sculpted, three-dimensional roof treatment, almost faceted in its design with ambient lighting tracing its geometric contours. At night it glows softly, more private members’ club than performance SUV, casting diffused light across the Silverstone Merino leather.

It feels deliberate and indulgent, a slightly extravagant flourish in a cabin that already majors on comfort. In a car so outwardly assertive, the roof lining is unexpectedly artistic. Less about aggression, more about atmosphere and it elevates the interior from merely luxurious to genuinely distinctive.

The rest of the interior is expansive and beautifully finished. The M Multifunctional seats offer heating, ventilation and massage functions. The Harman/Kardon surround sound system delivers exceptional clarity.

Rear passengers are treated to quilted leather seating and generous legroom. Soft-close doors operate with satisfying discretion and the curved Live Cockpit Professional display with head-up functionality feels intuitive and modern for the driver.

Despite the Marmite exterior, the interior remains unmistakably BMW: logical, driver-focused and very, very luxurious. You cannot deny it. This is a superb place to spend time.

But this is an M car, remember. Press the red starter button and it awakens with a cultured but assertive tone. The hybrid system blends petrol and electric power with surprising smoothness and when both systems are working in concert, the result is ferocious. 738 horsepower in an SUV is not simply fast, it is destabilising.

The 1,000 Nm of torque arrives with such immediacy that overtakes require only a mild flex of the right foot. The eight-cylinder engine feels muscular rather than frantic. There is depth to the acceleration delivery - more a sense of endless, layered thrust rather than a single dramatic surge.

And yet it is capable of travelling up to 50 miles on electric power alone under WLTP testing. Official combined CO₂ is quoted at 52 g/km. Figures that seem faintly implausible when you consider the sheer mass involved.

At £160,000 as tested, the XM Label sits firmly in the upper reaches of the performance SUV world. It is more expensive than your Range Rovers yet still undercuts equivalent Bentaygas and DBXs while also being considerably rarer on British roads.

In a car park full of SUVs, it stands out. It commands attention, whether you intended it to or not. The BMW XM Label will not win universal approval. Some will object to the styling. Others will question the mass. A few may wonder whether an M car should ever weigh nearly 2.8 tonnes.

All valid observations. But to dismiss it outright would be to misunderstand it. This is not a purist’s vehicle. It is a flagship. A technological statement. A celebration of excess filtered through hybrid engineering and Bavarian confidence. And when you press the throttle and feel that tidal wave of torque, criticism tends to fade into the background, like the competition.

Yet it is also astonishingly capable, deeply comfortable, technically impressive and undeniably exclusive. Is it the most beautiful BMW ever built - no. But it is one of the most remarkable. And in an age where many cars are designed by committee to offend no one, there is something rather refreshing about that.

Love it or hate it. Just don’t deny it.

https://www.bmw.co.uk/en/index.html

Model: BMW XM Label

Base Price (As Driven): £153,365 (£159,352)

Propulsion: 4.4-litre Twin Turbo-Charged V8 and Plug-In Hybrid system.

Drivetrain: 8-Speed Automatic, Four Wheel Drive

Output (combined): 738 hp

Torque: 1,000 Nm

0-62 mph: 3.8 Seconds

Top Speed: 180 mph

Kerb Weight: 2,795 kg

C02 Emissions: 52 g/km

Consumption (WLTP):  122.8 mpg

Electric Range (Combined WLTP): 47.8 Miles