New BMW Hybrids Arrive Late to Game | cars styling

BMW ActiveHybrid 6

 BMW announced today that its first hybrid, the ActiveHybrid X6, will make its world premier at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, and will arrive in US showrooms in late 2009. BMW will also show the ActiveHybrid 7—which will reach the US in spring 2010—in Frankfurt.

We posted spy photos of the BMW ActiveHybrid X6 last month, when we received a report that the first production vehicles were rolling off the line at BMW’s Spartenburg, SC manufacturing facility. The latest announcement confirms BMW's progress with its hybrids.

The ActiveHybrid X6 is a full hybrid vehicle that delivers a full dose of oomph—480 horsepower when you combine power from the twin-turbocharged V8 4.4-liter gas engine and two electric motors. Fuel efficiency is improved by about 20 percent when compared to a comparable conventional vehicle, pushing the Hybrid X6’s fuel economy just above the 20-mpg mark. Expect zero-to-60 performance around five-and-a-half seconds, and a price tag of approximately $70,000.