Rumors have been swirling about the production of a BMW crossover for quite some time now, and just recently, it was confirmed that the German automaker does have plans to create one. The flagship crossover is said to be called the X7 and it will be built right here in the U.S. at their Spartanburg, SC plant. A new addition to the X series, the X7 will sit aside the line's four current sports utility models, which include the X1, X3, X5, X6 and the all-new X4.
Plans to build the X7 at Plant Spartanburg arrive on the heels of the plant's 20th anniversary, and they are being made possible due to a $1 billion investment by Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management, BMW Group. Due to the financial gain, Plant Spartanburg will be able to produce 450,000 cars by 2016 and create 800 jobs, which will benefit the community.
"We are expanding BMW Plant Spartanburg as our center of competence for production of BMW X models and broadening our product portfolio," said Reithhofer. "This expansion means Spartanburg will have the largest production capacity of any plant in our global production network. This plant already exports, on average, 70% of its annual production with a 2013 value of more than US$ 7.5 billion which, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, makes BMW the largest U.S. vehicle exporter to non-NAFTA countries."
In addition to the new X7 model, Plant Spartanburg will also be the production site for the future X5 hybrid plug-in model. While you wait for the new models to arrive, you can check out the entire 2014 X lineup right now at Reliable BMW.
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