The brand new, all-new BMW X3 has been unveiled and will be at South African dealerships before the end of 2010. This is not a facelift, it is a completely new car. What used to be BMW’s baby SUV (yes, I know, it’s an SAV in Bavaria) is now only second-smallest, no thanks to the new X1. Of course it’s grown larger and wider, and should now appeal to a more mature audience as well.
Two engines will be available at launch. The first is a four-cylinder 2.0-litre turbo diesel making 135kW at 4000rpm and maximum torque of 380Nm between 1750rpm and 2750rpm. They say it will accelerate from 0 – 100km/h in 8.5 seconds but return just 5.6 litres per 100km of diesel fuel. It will be badged X3 xDrive20d.
The other car is the xDrive35i which has a 3.0-litre direct turbo petrol engine worth 225kW at 5800rpm and 400Nm at 1300rpm. Note that this engine does NOT use two turbos like the previous one, but rather utilises just one. BMW claims an acceleration time of 5.7 seconds for the 0 – 100km/h sprint as far as this model goes. Average fuel consumption is said to be 8.8 litres per 100km.
X3 has always been quite athletic, for an SUV. In fact it handled better than a lot of sedans of any kind. Suspension is now also improved for even better handling. Remember, this car is not meant to do serious off-roading like a Land Rover Freelander. But on tar it is peerless.
Technologies employed for this purpose include xDrive all-wheel-drive which features things like DSC Dynamic Stability Control for minimising under/oversteer and an optional Performance Control system.
Equipment levels (standard and optional) are understandably high and include things like Head-Up Display, a panoramic sunroof, a reversing camera, cornering lights and the new iDrive system.
As always, I’ll try and guess how much the cheapest X3 will cost. With only two models launched internationally, I think the basic xDrive20d will go for around R440 000.
Click HERE to watch the video on IN4RIDE’s YouTube channel.
1 comment:
LOL! Beema needs to stop playing with us. This looks like a smaller version of the old x5, with a slight x1 side profile and managed retain its old x3 look and feel. They should just scrap the x3 period. Its never been a looker and this one has just kept up with that ethos. Ugly! its a shame Beema makes stunning cars, they lost the plot on this one and the previous one.
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