Facts and figures
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4x4 for Four
01.07.2008 |
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PART RALLY ASSAULT car, part coupé, part technological showpiece: this is the BMW X6, the world’s first sports activity coupé.
We can guess what you’re thinking – surely it’s just an X5 with the top bashed in? Well, yes and no.
There’s more than a hint of the X5 in that imposing front end and high, wide stance.
Jump behind the wheel and even the furniture is a carbon copy of the X5’s, with the exception of a pair of padded knee braces. That’s not a bad thing, given the high-quality materials and precision build, but difference would’ve been nice. Look over your shoulder, though, and you’ll cry: ‘Woah! What’s going on back there?’
In place of a three-seater bench is a pair of sports seats and, instead of a vast expanse of light and glass, there’s a plunging roofline and a pillar box slit of a rear screen.
Climb into one of the rear seats and the world closes in around you. The roof swoops down to meet your head and the side windows are ‘fashionably cropped’ and will give rear-seat passengers the distinct impression that they drew the short straw. Still, at least there’s plenty of leg and elbow room.
You’ll get your money’s worth from any booster cushions, too, because the sports seats are low and the window line high. The kids will almost be at secondary school before they’re able to see out.
Unlike the X5, there’s no split fold-down tailgate, just
a conventional hatchback. That’s a shame, because the split door is a Godsend when you’ve got weekly shopping and kids.
Instead, the one-piece hatch opening (with a high load lip) reveals a deep and wide, if slightly shallow boot, which extends to 1450 litres with the rear seats down.
Gadgets Galore
While the X5’s four-wheel drive set-up is pretty clever, the X6’s xDrive technology is like a summit meeting of Mensa.
The central Dynamic Performance Control is the brains of the outfit. It uses electronic sensors and sophisticated differentials to dole out power not only between front and rear axles, but also between each rear wheel, to maximise traction. It operates constantly, so you get a stabilising effect regardless of whether you’re speeding up or slowing down.
Whats it like to drive?
At low speeds, it feels like an X5. It’s also comfortable, assured and adept at disguising its bulk.
As speeds increase, however, the X6 moves into a league of its own.
Throw it at a series of slippery bends and it zips through them with an eagerness and tenacity that would leave an X5 floundering – and that’s saying something.
If you plump for the top-of-the-range X6 50i, you’ll get Adaptive Drive, which alters suspension damping and adjusts the anti-roll-bars to counter body roll.
In some ways it’s quite eerie, hustling more than two tons of car along a twisty road with next to no roll, but it’s preferable to the roly-poly antics of many big 4x4s.
BMW also seems to have learnt how to get the best from stiff-walled run-flat tyres. The X6 doesn’t ride harshly at all, feeling supple and comfortable on all but the worst surfaces.
There’s also little road noise transmitted into the cabin, even on noisy concrete motorway sections.
Under the bonnet
It’s hard to believe, but BMW used to consider turbocharging the work of Beelzebub. Not any more, because it has certainly embraced the dark side. Of the four engines initially on offer, all have turbos.
First up, and likely to be the best seller, is the familiar 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbodiesel. Its 231bhp makes it punchy and yet it still returns 34.4mpg.
If your can afford it, the X635d is even better. It’s essentially the same engine, but with two turbos – one large and one small. They work in sequence to minimise low-rev hesitation and aid high-speed power, and make this considerably the quicker diesel X6. Granted,
it’s also a tad more vocal, but crucially the penalty at the pumps is negligible.
Petrol cars include the free-revving 302bhp twin-turbo six cylinder 3.0-litre or a new 402bhp 4.4-litre V8. This last unit features two turbos jammed between the V of the cylinders. It’s potent enough to dent the ego of many a supercar owner, and it sounds great, too. PT
