BMW to turn Alpina into performance luxury sub-brand below Rolls-Royce

Mercedes-Benz bought AMG and revived Maybach; Mini bought Cooper; Audi bought Lamborghini, and now BMW has bought Alpina.

Not lock, stock and barrel, but the brand name did change hands, and so will the specialist know-how in terms of engine and chassis development, and perhaps even the wood and leather shop which is claimed to be among the finest in the business.

The new arrangement may not be an instant licence to print money for either side, but it certainly is a pragmatic goodwill gesture which may evolve into win-win deal.

Alpina should win because it cannot fund the transformation from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles out of its own pocket. BMW should win because there is a big gap between the highest-end 7 and 8 Series and the no-longer entry-level Rolls-Royce Ghost.

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We're talking about the increasingly popular €150,000 to €300,000 bracket. That's where the money is, the fat margins loom, the bespoke business flourishes and a finely honed brand image can make all the difference. Just ask Bentley or Maybach.

It is common knowledge Rolls-Royce will go fully electric, starting next year with the Spectre coupé. An electric Dawn will follow suit, and so will battery-powered replacements for Ghost and Phantom. The next Cullinan must be a zero-emission vehicle, too.

On the BMW side of the equation, the 8 Series coupé and convertible will not be replaced, sources say. This move reduces the number of protected line-toppers to three: 7 Series, 8 Series Gran Coupé and X7.

That's probably good enough to match Audi, Lexus and Genesis, but what about Maybach, who are reportedly preparing a full-size coupé and convertible along with a luxury four-door coupé?

Not to mention Bentley, where four EVs priced between €300,000 and €450,000 are allegedly under development.

Although BMW M could easily conceive its own one megawatt halo car – picture a reimagined M1 – the parent brand also needs credible fresh fare for environment-conscious high net-worth individuals, aka the super rich.

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This is where Alpina comes into the picture. Of course it's still very early days, but imagining a lavish extended-wheelbase 9 Series Alpina in saloon and Gran Coupé guise flanked by a stretched three-row X9 LUV (luxury utility vehicle) is not rocket science.

While BMW would provide the relevant architectures, Alpina would tune the chassis, create bespoke performance packages and cater for the growing demand of personalised colour, trim and equipment options.

True, that's exactly what the elite conversion specialists have been doing for the last 20 or 30 years. But the rules are about to change because starting in 2025, every new BMW model will be based on the brand-new next-generation Neue Klasse architecture.

The Neue Klasse is electric first, but not yet electric only. It is in other words still capable to accommodate the six- and eight-cylinder engines that made Alpina famous, albeit most likely only in petrol-fed form.

It certainly helps in this context that BMW decided early on in the game to prepare its powerplants for the upcoming Euro 7 emission norm. On their own, Alpina would have been hard pressed to finance this imperative upgrade, just as they could not afford their own unique EV componentry.

As far as combustion engines go, however, coveted Alpina fortes like even more low-end torque and extra refinement can safely prevail through the end of the 2020s.

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On the EV front, BMW will simultaneously generate a set of tweaked e-motors, inverters and batteries for its in-house Alpina branch.

The M division has nothing at all to do with the parent company's new acquisition. In contrast to the performance-oriented Garching power brokers, Alpina is seen as provider of luxury mobility as a service. Assets are to include faster priority charging, extended user benefits and tailormade on-demand software upgrades.

2021 was Alpina's best-ever year, and almost the entire output scheduled for 2022 is already spoken for, too.

But let's face it: between now and the end of 2025, the niche capacity-restricted manufacturer from Buchloe near Munich can build no more than 5000 units.

To sweeten the good-bye from treasured independence, BMW agreed to pay for Alpina's engineering services at least through 2030. In addition, big brother will hire 50 of the 280 Alpina workers, a number which includes 100 production and assembly specialists who can expect golden handshakes.

According to the managing director Andreas Bovensiepen, the company founded by his father will in the future concentrate on restoring and dealing with classic Alpinas.

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The main factory is to be converted into an experience center for owners, fans and prospective customers.

Customers of exactly what? "There is always the option to do a one-off car or a small batch of few-offs in line with the brand's long-running tradition," says Bovensiepen.

"The scope of activities is however strictly limited by the mounting regulation and homologation restrictions."