BMW not keen to join pickup truck club. Know why

Pickup trucks may be the hottest thing in the automotive world, with several legacy players and startups jumping on the bandwagon. But German luxury car manufacturer BMW doesn't see itself fitting the mould. The automaker's design boss Adrian van Hooydonk has cleared that a pickup truck is not something BMW is interested in, at least in the foreseeable future. BMWBlog reports that he is not against pickup trucks but doesn't see one such vehicle fitting BMW's philosophy.

Hooydonk said to the BMWBlog that a pickup truck is not an obvious fit for the BMW brand. He also stated that despite pickup trucks becoming more sophisticated and getting more refined, the luxury carmaker doesn't need to go after every trend that is happening. "If we go into a segment, then we want to go in there for the long haul. Also, we don’t have to go after every trend that is happening. What I do see and find interesting is that during Covid, we saw a trend for people who want to spend time outdoors," he said.

Interestingly, BMW built a one-off pickup truck based on the X7 SUV in 2019. This came as a concept model that showcased the automaker's capability. The X7-based pickup truck came with a cargo bed featuring polished wood. Also, it was displayed with a BMW F 850 GS adventure motorcycle on the cargo deck. Besides that, BMW's high-performance-focused M division designed unique pickup trucks based on the E92 and E30 generations of the M3. However, none of these pickup trucks was meant for mass production.

Interestingly, at a time when several auto manufacturers have indulged in making pickup trucks considering their high demand and profitability, in the luxury car market, the story is different. Mercedes-Benz, one of the archrivals of BMW, tapped the pickup truck segment with the X-Class back in 2017. But it was in business for a very short term, as its production ended in 2020 only.