A lot of the auto industry focuses on figuring out what it is that consumers want whether they know it or not, and rapidly building a car to suit those needs before the other guys build something better. BMW thought it had managed to build a good crop of SUVs and crossovers of the X variety to quell leather-loving utility freaks. Only problem is that the existence of the $215,000 Bentley Bentayga and option-heavy Land Rovers that balloon past the $100,000 mark prove BMW wrong.

Even though the BMW X7 SUV has been slated for release for some time, it now seems that there will be more than one version of the top-tier Bimmer SUV. The cheaper version will be a seven-seater that promises to have a design that's different than the X5 crossover. To compete with some of the aforementioned higher-end offerings, the other version of the X7 will be an ultra-luxurious SUV that will cost more than $100,000. With low gas prices and a stronger economy pushing SUVs back to the forefront of the auto industry, the X7's 2018 release couldn't come soon enough. Companies like Jaguar, Maserati, and Mercedes have already pledged new competitors to line this segment with plenty of options.

Mercedes has proposed what will likely be a more luxurious Mercedes-Maybach GLS SUV, but this doesn't scare BMW one bit because it also has the Rolls-Royce Cullinan coming in 2018 to compete. The Cullinan will roll on its own aluminum space frame platform and not share much, if anything, with the X7. Even though we have to wait at least two years for the X7 to hit the road, BMW says that the SUV is well past the development phase, which means that this camo-covered crossover may be pretty close to what it will look like in the metal. Like the other BMW X models, the X7 will be built in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and likely be heavily exported to China and the Middle East.