We wouldn't describe many luxury crossovers as eager, but the X1 does seem to earn it.įront-seat accommodations are fine for even tall adults the roofline bumps up to suit almost everyone. With more engine exhaust resonance in the cabin than we'd like, and a little more body roll than you'd find than in models with optional sport packages, the X1 steered truer than many other crossovers, and its short wheelbase still handled terrible pavement assuredly. There's an sDrive28i rear-drive model we haven't driven, with electric power steering our xDrive model offered more natural-feeling hydraulic steering, and complemented the X1's typically excellent BMW dynamics. Our first drive's been exclusively in an X1 xDrive28i, with BMW's natty 2.0-liter turbo four, direct-injected, with 240 hp and teamed with a paddle-shifted eight-speed automatic and, in this case, variable-torque-split all-wheel drive. It's configured only with all-wheel drive and a six-speed automatic, and scoots to 60 mph in about 5.3 seconds and to 21 mpg, EPA combined, BMW says. We haven't yet driven the potent 300-horsepower, turbocharged 3.0-liter in-line six that's found in the X1 xDrive35i. To the rest of us, the anatomically themed dash looks good enough, but the smattering of dissimilar controls-all black on a black background-are a game of concentration, at first. Or, where the lipped wheel arches offer the TelePrompTer cue: "Psssst.SUV!" Any 3-Series driver will take command at the X1's wheel in an instant: the controls are just where BMW drivers expect them. The X1's softly curved sheetmetal reads more like a sport shoe, except where the tall glass areas and the high nose give away the jacked-up stance. There's little here to suggest a pavement-free adventure could happen at any moment. The X1 has BMW's "Sport-Activity Vehicle" profile down pat. But with its shorter wheelbase and a small back seat better for kids than adults, it's less like BMW's own X3, more like the previous-generation 3-Series wagon than its high-riding profile might let on. It's tall, with all-wheel drive and a moderate amount of ground clearance to appeal to more rugged instincts.
Somewhere in the grey area between hot hatchbacks and curt crossovers lies the new 2013 BMW X1.
0 kommentar(er)
