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By
ALISTAIR KENNEDY
21 July 2008
BMW has launched its new X6, an all-new crossover vehicle that’s
a blend of SUV and sporting coupe. Never reluctant to introduce
new naming categories, the Bavarians have decided to call it a
Sports Activity Coupe.
The
styling of the BMW X6 is fascinating and emphasises the diversity
of the vehicle. From the front it looks like an SUV, in profile
like a coupe and from the rear a hatchback, albeit with a large
rump. But regardless of the angle from which it’s viewed, it is
refreshingly distinctive in this era of sameness in car design.
Strictly
speaking the X6 is more hatch than coupe in that it does have
full-sized rear doors as well as a roof-hinged hatch, one that
opens wide to reveal a large storage area.
Interior
space is good, as it should be in a vehicle of its size – built
on the same platform as the X5, it’s 4.9 metres long and nearly
two metres wide. There’s plenty of front headroom, even when the
optional sunroof is fitted. Rear seat legroom is fine although
taller passengers could have a problem due to the coupe-like
roofline. Note that it is a four- rather than five-seater with the
individual rear seats separated by a console.
Two
models will be available when the X6 goes on sale in mid-August.
Both will come with 3.0-litre twin-turbo engines, one petrol, the
other diesel. They come with the rather cumbersome names, X6
xDrive 35i and X6 xDrive 35d. The V8-powered X6 xDrive 50i will
arrive here in early 2009.
Maximum power from the petrol and diesel sixes is 225 and
210 kilowatts respectively. There’s a big spread of torque from
both engines thanks to the twin turbochargers, the 35i generating
400 Newton metres between 1300 and 5000 rpm and the 35d reaching
580 Nm from 1750 to 2250 revs.
The two turbochargers, one smaller than the other, operate
together with the smaller one developing power and torque at low
speeds. As engine speed increases the larger turbo joins in, and
then at higher revolutions the smaller turbo closes down leaving
the larger one to operate on its own. The overall effect is to
provide prompt and smooth acceleration with a minimum of turbo
lag.
Zero to 100 km/h acceleration is listed as 6.7 seconds from
the 35i and 6.9 seconds from the 35d. The upcoming 4.4-litre V8
version will cut this time down to just 5.5 seconds. Impressive
figures for such a large vehicle.
All X6 models come with
six-speed automatic transmission and the choice of gearshift lever
or steering wheel mounted paddles to operate the Steptronic
system.
Based on European testing
fuel consumption of 12.1 litres per 100 kilometres can be expected
from a combination of city and country driving in the 35i and 9.0
L/100 km in the 35d.
We
were able to test both petrol and diesel versions of the X6 in the
hills and forests of the Yarra Ranges National Park to the
north-east of Melbourne including a section on wet, gravel roads
that included the remnants of a recent snowfall.
Weighing
in at around 2100 kg, the X6 is a big lump of a vehicle, although
it certainly doesn’t handle like one. There’s a real feeling
of stability and security even when the X6 is driven hard. A major
contributor to this is BMW’s new Dynamic Performance Control (DPC)
system that uses a complex multi-clutch differential to help
control under and oversteer by varying the distribution of power
between the rear wheels without locking out power to the unloaded
wheel.
All in all it’s very
easy to forget that you’re driving a bulky 4WD and not a
spritely sports car. Suspension, although firmer than on the X5,
remains comfortable for long distance cruising.
Standard
features in all X6 models include front, side and head airbags,
stability and traction control, head-up display, hill descent
control, parking sensors, rear view camera, fog lights, four-zone
climate control air conditioning, cruise control, satellite
navigation, television, USB audio interface, powered front sports
seats, leather upholstery and Bluebooth phone capacity.
The
target market for the $100,000-plus X6 is likely to be
baby-boomers, still keen on enjoyable driving, but now struggling
to fit into their former low-slung sports cars. And the demand is
already there with BMW having already pre-sold 100 of the 300 cars
that it has been allocated for this year.
The
BMW X6 xDrive 35i is priced at $114,705 and the xDrive 35d at
$120,530. The price of the xDrive 50i will be released nearer the
time of its release, probably in January 2009.
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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