New Vision BMW Alpina readied for Villa D'Este
We've all had our guesses as to what a BMW Alpina might be; we'll have a better idea this Friday
Can’t be an easy task, reinventing Alpina. That’s the job BMW has ahead, having taken over the naming rights from the Bovensiepen family at the start of 2026. Keep it too traditional and the relaunch will look lazy, trading too heavily on former glories (and 20-spoke wheels); but make a BMW Alpina too different from what was loved about Buchloe-era Alpinas and the car might struggle for a USP. It must strike the right balance between BMW and Alpina to both appeal to existing buyers and entice conquest customers. Not simple.
This is the first look at what’s to come, a preview of the Vision BMW Alpina set to debut at Villa D’Este this Friday. As always, there’s not very much to be identified for certain, though there are reasons to be encouraged. It’s not an X7, for one thing, instead, a long, low, sleek coupe - the kind of thing Alpina has always excelled at. From the E24 6 Series models of the '80s and 8 Series Alpinas of the '90s to the 21st-century resurrections of both, the large super GT is something Alpina has always done exceptionally well. It’s nice to see that heritage hasn’t been abandoned.
Apparently what we’re looking at here is a ‘composition of sophistication, performance and comfort’, so expect a fast car - but a very different experience to an M product. And it would seem that BMW Alpina is setting out its stall immediately as the maker of large and lavish machines; probably the days of the fabled badge on everyday BMWs are part of Alpina’s past. Finally, let’s not forget that BMW has often used Lake Como to show Vision concepts that end up strongly influencing production machines: see the 8 Series Vision of 2017, plus the recent Skytop and Speedtop that were actually made. So a Vision BMW Alpina really ought to preview what’s coming from the new era, rather than just show off what an unshackled design team can do.
We’ll know more on Friday afternoon. While recent BMW creations haven’t always met with unanimous approval, some of its concepts for Villa D’Este have been absolute stunners. And the future direction of Alpina is a pretty significant task. It has to be good - doesn’t it?
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