While the odd ski box or pair of roof racks are not unheard of additions to your typical grocery-getter, they aren’t nearly as popular among performance-car enthusiasts. Taking it a step further, roof-tent toting, camper-shell-equipped sports-car builds are certainly few and far between, for obvious reasons. Besides supplementing your road-going two-seater with some outdoorsy DNA, there’s almost zero practicality to such additions—unless you’re one of the brave souls who aren’t afraid of letting your sports car actually touch uneven terrain.
However, more and more concept art seems to push the community toward a new perspective on the interdisciplinary aspect of off-the-grid luxury.
We live in an age where consumers are no longer looking for a car to serve one singular purpose, hence the growing popularity of sport crossovers and BMW’s hot-selling lineup of SAVs. Maybe you’re looking for a well-rounded vehicle that is just as comfortable hauling the family to the park as it is doing a few laps around the track.
Or perhaps you’re someone who just doesn’t like your automotive tastes governed by labels—like BradBuilds.
Based in Los Angeles, California, BradBuilds is a concept artist with an aptitude for navigating the world of automotive design and bringing unheard of designs to life, at least on your phone screen. Riding on the coattails of his popular safari-ready Tesla Roadster and apocalypse-proof Model X renderings comes his latest creation, which features the new G82 generation of the M4.
In the past, we’ve seen some adventurous Porsche enthusiasts fasten roof tents to their 911s, effectively converting them into temporary lodging for a National Park staycation—but is the same thing possible with a range-topping, track-focused BMW?
If you’re familiar with BMW’s dabbling in the work truck world, you may think so. Although the E30 M3 and E92 M3 pickup trucks were one-offs that were never available to the public, the fact that BMW engineers even thought to build such a thing means that this adventure bimmer concept isn’t completely far-fetched. One especially enthusiastic BMW fan even made their own E46 M3 pickup and raced it on the Nürburgring—proof that just about anything is possible if you have the means (and the patience) to bring your vision to life.
In BradBuilds’ world, the new G82 M4 is the perfect foundation for a peppy overlander. Complete with a generous lift, beefy BF Goodrich all-terrain tires, a roll cage, and what appears to be a composite camper shell complete with all of the comforts of a modern rig, this 500-horsepower BMW will surely stand out at your local campground. Although the small camper portion of the build probably takes up the entire space once occupied by the rear seats and trunk, BradBuilds assures us that it would fit a small bed, kitchenette, and solar panels to power your day of off-the-grid hoonage—adding some logic to what would otherwise be one seriously insane creation. Any chances of this rendered concept ever becoming a reality are obviously inconsequential, but we have to admit that this Mad Max M4 looks pretty good in camping attire.
Could you ever envision this off-road coupe in your garage?—Malia Murphy
[Photos courtesy BradBuilds on Instagram.]