BMW may have recently taken total control of legendary German tuning house Alpina, but the plans have been in motion for years. In 2022, BMW announced it had agreed to purchase the brand and bring it in-house, with the sale being finalized and ownership transferred in January, 2026. Now, just five months later, the brand has its first concept car, and it looks fantastic.
While the first production Alpina model from BMW will be based on 7 Series—or, as BMW says “inspired by” the 7—the Vision concept picks up where the two previous concepts from the brand at Villa d’Este, the Speedtop and Skytop, left off. This is one of the prettiest concepts from BMW in recent memory, and showcases its intention with where Alpina is heading, to create a luxury brand that emphasizes passenger comfort while providing fantastic driving dynamics. A mid-point for the group between mainline BMW and ultra-luxury Rolls-Royce, meaning these cars will provide superb luxury but are still meant to be driven.
The Vision Alpina came from the division’s design head, Maximillian Missoni. When we recently spoke to Missoni about the refreshed 7 Series, this is what he told us about how he’s thinking about Alpina:
The beauty of the pairing of BMW and Alpina, and the fact that Alpina is now in the family, is that Alpina historically basically extrapolated the qualities of BMW, driving dynamics, performance, to an even higher level through meticulous improvement of the components. Alpina also added a very strong component of luxury to the cars, with heightened materials and individualization for the customers. And this combination is a perfect place to operate in between where BMW as a brand ends and then up there where Rolls Royce starts.
That whole stretch in the market is perfectly suited for this combination. We’re just at the beginning of this journey, but Alpina could potentially be so much more, and that’s something that is a dialogue and discussion that we will have with you and the public soon.
So, what we have here is a lovely coupe that maintains a lot of Alpina hallmarks, just updated. The Deco-lines on the side have been an Alpina hallmark since the Seventies, and they’re subtly featured here. The 20-spoke wheels, here in 22- and 23-inch sizes, are mildly updated for this new era. Then there’s the overall design, which leans into a classic sharknose front-end that BMW had for generations, and a chromed surround on the grille, like the 507, which just so happens to be Missoni’s favorite BMW. The slender running lights look similar to those on the new 7 Series, with the headlights very artfully hidden below.
Out back, the rear is curvaceous with impossibly narrow taillights. It strikes a pretty amazing profile, with the long hood and pushed back cabin declaring presence. That presence might also be because of its size, which is 204.7 inches, nearly as long as the 7 Series.
Inside looks nearly production ready, with an adaptation of the panoramic iDrive and dual-screen setup from the updated 7 Series. That’s paired with a panoramic glass roof and an interior that uses darker materials in the upper part of the interior and lighter as it gets lower. The drive modes vary from Comfort+—an even softer and more cosseting mode than BMW’s regular Comfort—all the way to a new mode dubbed Speed and are all paired with different lighting and UI that use Alpina’s classic blue and green.
While this is purely a design concept, BMW does confirm it has a V-8 and retains the traditional quad oval Alpina exhaust tips. If it makes it to production, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a version of the M5’s PHEV V-8 powertrain appear here. It’s also likely that this concept rides on a version of the CLAR platform that’s underneath the 5 and 7 Series, but none of that is the point here. It’s all about how it looks, and that is certainly a home run.
This is a great start for the new chapter of Alpina.
