BMW Concept Speedtop debuts at Villa d'Este concours
Elevating the Touring (station wagon) format to new heights, the sleek two-door shooting brake, like last year's Concept Skytop, is underpinned by M8 Competition architecture and powered by BMW's formidable 4.4l twin-turbocharged V8 engine.
A V-shaped front end, featuring slim headlamps and an illuminated kidney grille, leads into an elongated bonnet marked by a tapering central spine. The design element flows over the roof and ends at a spoiler perched above a sharply raked rear windscreen.
With sculpted shoulders, wide rear haunches, bespoke 14-spoke alloy wheels and a roof painted in a shifting gradient from Floating Sunstone Maroon to Floating Sundown Silver, the two-seater Concept Speedtop is visually striking and undeniably distinctive.
Inside, the cabin is rich in unique design details, including brogue-style accents on leather-trimmed surfaces. A two-tone colour scheme links exterior and interior themes, pairing Sundown Maroon with light Moonstone White upholstery. The contrast also helps to differentiate functional components from aesthetic ones.
The roof spine motif continues inside as a light strip embedded in the leather headliner, offering subtle ambient lighting. The leather-lined trunk features brogue-style perforations and a built-in light beam to emphasise its two-part layout, allowing for the storage of bulkier items.
The Concept Speedtop's interior and exterior were crafted with assistance from the BMW Group's Manufactory workshop in Dingolfing, while Italian leather specialist Schedoni supplied custom luggage tailored to match the car's materials and colours. Two dedicated compartments behind the seats house fitted Schedoni bags, with a matching weekend bag stowed in the trunk.
BMW has confirmed a limited production run of only 70 units, with pricing expected to start at about R10.4m.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Citizen
a day ago
- The Citizen
BMW working on new off-road-focused flagship SUV?
In July 2025, CAR Magazine reported that BMW has confirmed its M department is working on a new halo performance car. However, it seems a car of this ilk is not the only BMW in the works, with reports now suggesting the Bavarian brand is working on a new off-road flagship SUV. While there's no official confirmation about this model yet, Autonews has reported that inside sources have said it will be internally known as the G74, likely be based on the next-generation X5's unibody platform (as opposed to the X7's), and debut in 2029. In addition, this publication's sources have suggested the as-of-yet-unconfirmed SUV is expected to employ an internal combustion engine (ICE). Though, a fair bet would be that the latter will likely be supplemented by some electric wizardry. In addition, as it will reportedly be a more off-road-focused offering, it will likely feature an array of mechanical items to lend it improved capability. As a reminder, BMW's current SUV (or SAV, sports activity vehicle, in BMW speak) portfolio comprises a variety of models – ranging from the X1 to the barnstorming XM, the latter of which is expected to be discontinued in 2028 according to reports. Browse thousands of new and used vehicles here with CARmag! The post BMW Working on New Off-Road-Focused Flagship SUV? – Report appeared first on CAR Magazine.

TimesLIVE
2 days ago
- TimesLIVE
Toyota to introduce three EV models to South Africa in 2026
Toyota plans to introduce three fully-electric models in South Africa in 2026, a senior executive said on Thursday, entering a nascent electric vehicle (EV) market where Chinese rivals such as BYD are already competing with European carmakers. Volvo dominates EV sales in South Africa, followed by BMW and Mercedes-Benz, but Chinese EV makers are starting to flood the market as they seek new markets amid restrictions on exports to the US and Europe. Toyota only sells hybrid EVs in South Africa, but leads with a commanding 67% of the market for hybrids and plug-in hybrids in 2024, with models such as the Corolla Cross. 'We're launching battery EVs at the beginning of 2026, so we will have three new battery EVs,' Toyota South Africa CEO Andrew Kirby told Reuters on the sidelines of a car components conference, without providing further details. 'We do not believe one powertrain is going to dominate in the future. So we'll have internal combustion engines, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, battery EVs, fuel cell EVs and potentially a carbon neutral internal combustion engine.' Low incomes, high import duties, unreliable power availability and a lack of sufficient charging infrastructure have long hampered manufacturers' efforts to sell EVs in South Africa, whose share of total sales is still low. On Chinese competition, Kirby said while he welcomes competition, 'it's a strategic concern for us and we need to make sure we respond in the right way and as quickly as possible. It's a big challenge'. South Africa's automotive sector 'is at an inflection point', he added, with fairly flat production volumes, a drop in local content and a surge in imported vehicle sales. This has prompted the big local car manufacturers, including Toyota, BMW, Isuzu and Volkswagen, to put together a policy recommendation document sent to the trade and industry minister on how to support and protect the industry, Kirby said. 'We have some taxation structures that are a bit counterproductive and so we've made some fiscally neutral policy proposals,' Kirby said, adding that proposals also include the restructuring of the rebate system. 'We are hoping that in the next six months there will be some short-term interventions that can be announced.'

IOL News
4 days ago
- IOL News
Gauteng man in a legal battle with BMW Financial Services as he's forced to pay over R1. 6 million for uncollected car
Farhaad Mahomed was concerned that the new car he purchased might have been test-driven by potential buyers after seeing it displayed in the dealership's showroom. A Gauteng business man is in a financial nightmare as BMW Financial Services have taken him to court to demand R1.6 million over a luxury vehicle he never collected. The turmoil began in late 2019 when Farhaad Mahomed, riding high on the success of his business, made a significant investment into a brand-new BMW X3M Competition destined to enhance his fleet. The 50-year-old from Lenasia in Johannesburg, bought the brand new car in November 2019 from SMG BMW Century City in Cape Town. To secure the car, he stated that the dealership required him to sign an undated finance contract even though the vehicle was still at the port of Durban. Before the deal was completed, Mahomed said he paid a hefty R200,000 deposit and BMW Financial Services financed the balance of over R1 million. Mahomed arranged for the vehicle to be delivered to his local BMW dealership, planning to pick it up in January 2020 so that it could be registered as a 2020 model. Little did he know, this decision would plunge him into a legal nightmare. "If I had fetched it immediately in December, it would have been registered as a 2019 model and I would have driven it for just 30 days, for me it didn't make sense. So we agreed that I'll be fetching the car on January 2, 2020," he said. As he was still waiting to collect the car, he noticed the car was advertised on various social media platforms after it was displayed in the dealership's showroom. He grew concerned that prospective clients might be test-driving it and asked for the advertisement to be taken down, but his request was not fulfilled. "I was not happy because this means anyone who came to the dealership had access to the car and would have potentially test driven it if they were interested in it. This means the car was no longer new but a demo car and I was not going to accept it." He provided IOL with an email sent to BMW, detailing his concern about the car being displayed in the showroom. In response, the sales manager explained that the car was in the showroom due to the basement parking being full. The manager also stated that it was improbable for Mahomed to be the vehicle's first driver, as new vehicles are typically driven multiple times before reaching their owners. "When the car is loaded onto a carrier at the plant, it is physically driven by a person. The same happens when the car is loaded onto a cargo vessel for the shipping of the car to South Africa. Once the vessel arrives in our harbor, another person physically drives the car off the vessel to be loaded onto a carrier that will transport the car to Midrand," read the reply. Still not satisfied with the response, Mahomed said he requested the footage to prove the car had not been driven while at the dealership, but he was informed that there were no cameras in the showroom and others were not working. "That's when I knew they were playing me, they couldn't even provide me with proof that the car remained stationery from the day they got delivery," he said.