It's easy to imagine proud and analytical Germans evading the pickup truck market due to concerns that the rest of the world's automakers have it covered. US manufacturers have the American market cornered and show no signs of relenting while Japan has at least some foothold within US borders and justifies its venture by selling trucks to the rest of the world. It took a cost-cutting platform sharing maneuver to convince Mercedes to start selling a truck.

Even then, the Tri-Star's truck won't make it to America...yet. Unless, of course, its arch rival BMW decides to join the club. While BMW engineers previously pranked the world by teasing an E92 M3-based ute, rendering artist Rain Prisk has taken imagination, pictures of the BMW X5, and image processing software and infused them together to derive this interesting concoction of an X5's front end attached to a pickup truck bed. The result is a truck that has few similarities to the Mercedes X-Class pickup truck, but one that could challenge the luxury truck if it made landfall in America. Of the two, the Bimmer retains its luxury SUV look the most while the X-Class blends class and rugged looks and pulls off using a rounded shape.

Black rims notwithstanding (not BMW's style) the rear of the truck is much more angular, a bit like the Honda Ridgeline's, than what the Blue and White Roundel typically goes for. However, if BMW did decide to build a truck, this at least helps give us an idea of what it could look like. Larger fenders, massive wheel arches, and armor cladding towards the bottom of the truck help to keep this concept both functional and attractive. Last July, Australia's BMW managing director Marc Werner mentioned that the automaker was closely watching the pickup truck segment to determine if it's one worth entering. If BMW did decide to infiltrate, we'd expect it to partner with Toyota given that the companies already share platforms.

This would give BMW access to the Japanese automaker's wealth of truck experience, rigid chassis, and manufacturing capabilities. If our fantasy comes true, expect the luxury automaker, along with a few other high-end manufacturers, to delve into the lucrative market of the luxury pickup truck.