BMW Working On G-Class Rival To Replace Its Most Hated SUV

BMW Working On G-Class Rival To Replace Its Most Hated SUV originally appeared on Autoblog.

BMW’s new halo SUV will be nothing like the current one

A new report from Automotive News says that BMW is working on a rugged, off-road SUV to rival the legendary Mercedes-Benz G-Class. This would be new territory for BMW, which has never had a true production off-road SUV beyond an X5 or two equipped with an off-road package—much like the xOffRoad Package introduced last year for the X5 Silver Anniversary Edition.

Carrying the code name G74, the new SUV has another important job: Replacing the controversial and underwhelming XM.

Underpinned By Next-Gen X5 Platform

The new BMW SUV will be based on the platform of the next X5, but it will be updated to accommodate the G74’s more specialized off-roading aspirations. Having a platform in common with the next X5 suggests that the G74 will use an internal combustion engine, possibly in plug-in hybrid form. In the new X5, such a powertrain is rumored to produce over 550 horsepower, so the G74 will be anything but slow. If BMW does consider an electric option, it will need to do so cautiously, since the electric G-Class has not been a success.

As the X5 has always been a unibody crossover and not a body-on-frame SUV like the G-Class, it will be interesting to see how close BMW can get to the Merc’s off-roading capabilities.

No images have been shared to preview the G74’s design, but we expect something boxier and more upright than the brand’s current crop of road-biased SUVs. Hopefully, the cleaner lines of the Neue Klasse concepts will inspire the G74’s aesthetics, too.

Related: BMW Vision Neue Klasse Gallery: In The Metal From Goodwood

Why Replace The XM?

The XM was always going to be a bit of a gamble for BMW. Its sky-high price and in-your-face style were supposed to attract buyers who would otherwise consider a Lamborghini Urus, but the super SUV hasn’t been the sales success BMW might have expected. In the United States, sales of the XM fell by 24% in the second quarter of this year.

Not only is the XM’s design unloved, but many BMW fans feel its heavy plug-in hybrid system and its SUV body style were poor choices for what is the first standalone BMW M car since the iconic M1. Throw in the fact that an X5 M is cheaper, very nearly as quick, prettier, and better to drive, and it becomes hard to recommend the XM.

The G74 goes in a completely new direction for halo BMW SUVs, with a focus on off-road prowess instead. Production of the G74 is expected to start in 2029 at the company’s factory in South Carolina, following the discontinuation of the XM just before that.

BMW Working On G-Class Rival To Replace Its Most Hated SUV first appeared on Autoblog on Aug 13, 2025

This story was originally reported by Autoblog on Aug 13, 2025, where it first appeared.