If you BMW, chances are you've heard of Alpina. Alpina Automobile is a car manufacturer that specializes in turning "normal" BMW into ultraluxury vehicles with quite good performance upgrades as well. However, even if Alpina has always been very close to BMW, its never been fully part of it, and it took almost 60 years for BMW to acquire it.
The first thing you might ask yourself is; Is it going to change anything to the current BMW line-up, and the answer is yes? In the past years, Mercedes-Benz, which is the principal rival to BMW, absorbed Maybach, a company that used to compete with Rolls Royce but wasn't good at it. However, since Maybach has been under complete control of Mercedes-Benz, the company has been shining. So, in my mind, BMW's goal is to rival Maybach with its now complete control of Alpina. Chances are the luxury division won't focus so much on performance anymore and will allow more of its budget to the luxury aspect of each car it's building. In fact, BMW could offer Alpina package for M cars now that it has complete control of the brand.
What's what?
If you've never seen an Alpina BMW, it's totally normal. The brand produces around 1 500 cars per year which isn't much compared to the ten thousand cars that BMW is making. Also, Alpina models don't really stand out from the regular version. Yes, they do have fancier wheels and different badges, but other than that, they don't scream Alpina. Also, Alpina treatment is reserved for specific models only nowadays. The 7 Series, the 8 Series, and the X7 are the only models available with the Alpina version in the BMW line-up. As you might know, these vehicles aren't among BMWs most popular models, which means even seeing a regular version is something quite special. However, for those who know of those who can afford an Alpina, the differences between these models and the regular BMW are humongous.
Luxury and EV
I think, and I hope it's no secret for most people, but BMW is working towards a full EV line-up, and the Alpina acquisition might be part of the plan. If you've ever driven an electric vehicle, you know how comfortable it is. Also, acceleration is so strong and so smooth at the same time, which is quite perfect for a big luxury car, and this is why I think the Alpina models will be electrified in the near future.
This is pretty much all we know and all we can say about the brand acquisition by BMW for now, but I'm sure we will get more information with time. According to many sources, there is a good chance for smaller models such as the three series and the four series to get an Alpina version now that the brand is controlled by BMW. The least we can say is things will probably get even better than that. If you want my opinion, I think BMW has big plans for its technically new luxury division.
Jean-Sébastien Poudrier
