it's the camouflage BMW uses it to make it hard to photograph prototypes when they are out driving them . if you look at the x1 pictures and you can see when they really go to the extreme, it's very effective:
http://www.bmwblog.com/2009/01/19/bm...sting-in-snow/
or
http://www.bmwblog.com/2008/12/21/au...-x1-xdrive30i/