Wednesday 28th June 2017

Black Fire special editions for X5M and X6M

No facelift yet - just a strong, exciting and exclusive X5M and X6M

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"Black is strong, black is exciting and black is exclusive." So declares the press release for BMW's latest creations, the X5 M and X6 M Black Fire editions.

Now, ridiculous as it may seem to attach to such meaning to a mere paint job, BMW are far from the only ones to do so. From Asia, to America to these very shores, the black pack seems to have become a near ubiquitous marketing tool. Just recently we've reported on the Civic Type R Black Edition, the Ram Rebel Black Edition, and the Mercedes Night Edition. Not forgetting of course, "the deepest, darkest and most intense black to ever grace a production car", revealed to us today on the Rolls-Royce Dawn Black Badge.

In the case of BMW's uber-SUVs, it's now been nearly three years since they received a facelift, seemingly making them the ideal candidates to receive the blackout treatment. What does it all mean though? Well, if you're reading this in the UK, the answer is nothing because the Black Fire editions will not be available here. But should you be lucky enough to live in a market where they are sold, there is much to look forward to. For starters there's the Sapphire Black Metallic paint, obviously, the forged 21-inch wheels (versus 20-inch on the regular car) and the Black Merino leather with Mugello Red accents on the seats and dash. Despite kerb weights of 2,350kg and 2,265kg respectively, the X five-and-six-ems also feature standard carbon mirror caps which, "make the lightweight construction of the two models visible." Hmm...

Underneath there are no mechanical changes, so you'll have to make do with just the 575hp and 553lb ft that the 4.4-litre V8 engine currently produces, drive being sent to all four wheels via an automatic, eight-speed, torque converter gearbox. 0-62mph takes just 4.2 seconds though, still remarkable for cars of this size, so at least you'll be able to get away before anyone sees you inside.

The Black Fire Editions are (not) available from August onwards with a starting price of 142,260 euros for the X5 M and 145,760 euros for the X6 M. There is a perfectly nice, black-on-black, X5 M in the classifieds if you are really hankering after one though. Place your bets on the next car to receive the black treatment now!

[WCZ]

"The Black Fire Editions are not available from August onwards with a starting price of 142,260 euros for the X5 M and 145,760 euros for the X6 M"

okay, when are they available from and what are their prices then?