Alpina, the longstanding German tuning company responsible for building some of the coolest BMW-based race cars and road cars of the last 60 or so years, has been undergoing huge changes since 2022. Four years ago, BMW announced it had purchased the tuner brand, with plans to absorb it into the BMW Group conglomerate. Earlier this year, the transfer of ownership was finalized, and BMW even unveiled a revised logo for the newly formed subsidiary, simply called BMW Alpina.
In modern times, Alpina is best-known for building highly capable and highly usable versions of standard BMW models. It was sort of like BMW M’s more luxurious, quirkier cousin. It built cars that were quick, but also distinctly styled and awash with high-quality materials. For America, that meant cars like the B6, based on the 6-Series, the B7, based on the 7-Series, and the XB7, based on the X7 SUV.
Alpina has yet to reveal a new car since BMW acquired it, leading the industry to ponder what sorts of changes the execs in Bavaria had in store for the brand. In March, CEO Oliver Zipse positioned BMW Alpina as a brand that could sit between the standard BMW lineup and the Rolls-Royce ultra-luxury brand, which makes sense considering its recent history.
Now, thanks to this new concept, the car world finally has a good idea of where BMW is taking the Alpina brand. Called the Vision BMW Alpina, it’s a huge, V8-powered two-door coupe that’s as long as a Chrysler minivan.
I Can Get On Board With This
The Vision BMW Alpina feels like a greatest-hits mashup of BMW’s design history. The overall shape is very 8-Series, with the long nose and relatively short rear overhang. At 204.7 inches long, it’s about as long as a Chrysler Pacifica. The big, wide kidney grilles remind me of those found on that ultra-limited 3.0 CSL the company sold a few years back, while the pointy beak shape is inspired by the original B7 coupe from the late ’70s, which was based on the “sharknose” E24 6-Series. Naturally, the grille surrounds are illuminated in a specific warm tone “inspired by the first light over the Bavarian Alps,” according to BMW.
The headlight fixtures and vertical vents on either end of the fascia, meanwhile, feel pretty similar to the units found on the current 7-Series. The taillights, on the other hand, remind me a bit of the lights found on the back of the Z8 roadster from the early 2000s (and also kinda give me Genesis vibes, to be honest). The interior is pretty 7-Series-ish, too, with a head-up display going from A-pillar to A-pillar, a main infotainment screen, and a secondary screen for the passenger. There are physical controls made from crystal for stuff like the window switches, start-stop button, drive mode selector, and seat adjustment rockers. Despite being a drive-focused coupe, there’s quite a lot going on in the rear seating area:
Behind the rear console, a glass water bottle sits beside BMW ALPINA crystal glasses that rise on a self-deploying mechanism. Each glass is engraved with 20 deco-lines and features a sixdegree rim profile, held by concealed magnets and softly lit against the open-grain center console.
This is an Alpina, after all, and what Alpina wouldn’t be complete with a set of the company’s signature 20-spoke wheels? They’re present and accounted for here, measuring 22 inches up front and 23 inches in the rear. The Alpina themes continue along the sides of the car, where you’ll find “modernized” versions of Alpina’s iconic deco-line pattern painted under the clear coat. There are also four elliptical exhaust pipes out back, a standard feature of any modern Alpina.
What’s Under The Skin?
BMW is being pretty vague on powertrain details, saying only that the Vision BMW Alpina is powered by a V8 of some kind. There’s no mention of output, transmission, driven wheels, or possible hybrid tech onboard. If I had to guess, it’s probably hiding a version of the company’s widely used 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8, which is found in everything from the 7-Series, to the X7, to the limited Skytop coupe. Of course, in reality, there could be no engine, as this is just a concept. It’s equally likely the car is a rolling design buck with no drivetrain at all.
As for chassis dynamics, BMW does drop a hint on what to expect behind the wheel, name-dropping Alpina’s founder, Burkard Bovensiepen, in the process. From the release:
Burkard Bovensiepen understood something much of the automotive world has forgotten: a comfortable driver is a faster driver. That belief remains central to the Vision BMW ALPINA. Alpina offers Comfort+, a setting beyond the standard BMW comfort calibration that delivers a more supple, refined character, and it is retained here.
How likely is the Vision BMW Alpina for production? BMW doesn’t give any hints, saying only that it’s a one-of-one design that signals “a new era for BMW Alpina.” Towards the end of the release, the company mentions that the first Alpina production car to be released under this new ownership won’t be a coupe at all—it’ll be a version of the current 7-Series. So if the Vision does get greenlit, we probably won’t see it for a while.
Either way, relaunching the brand with a big, stately, comfortable, stylish coupe feels like the right move for Alpina, as it seems to fit the brand’s ethos well.
Top graphic image: BMW
The post BMW Is Relaunching Alpina With A V8-Powered Concept Coupe That’s As Long As A Chrysler Pacifica appeared first on The Autopian.
