BMW X1 Baby SUV . . .
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Tsk Tsk is right
http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/art...348583,00.html
I love the BMW X5. Its superb build quality, imperious driving position and on-road dynamics make it one of my favourite off-roaders. The same, however, cannot be said about its smaller brother, the BMW X3.
http://www.caranddriver.com/roadtest...mw-x3-30i.html
If the X3 never rose up from the paper, we'd be quaffing schnapps in its honor. The doubt creeps in out on the road. The otherwise supple 3-series suspension has been radically hardened in the X3, kind of the way they harden ICBM silos. Shod in the rear with the 45-series, W-rated rubber of the optional Sport package, the X3's ride is hard-edged, concussive, and insufferable. Hit a craggy, undulating section of road, and the X3 bucks like a mare with Little Richard's pinky ring stuck under the saddle. Do it at speed, and the X3 is almost as good as a guillotine for testing your neck joints.
And all 3 editors were not fond of it...
RON KIINO
I might have thought more of the X3 had I not driven it back-to-back with a Subaru Forester 2.5XT. Yes, the Bimmer is ritzier, offers more niceties, such as a power liftgate and hill-descent control, and handles and brakes in a league above, but it's more than two seconds slower to 60, a lot harsher in the ride department, and about 15 grand more on the bottom line. And as far as I can tell, it doesn't offer any real advantage in rear-seat space, cargo room, or all-weather traction. By itself, the X3 is an able performer, but next to the Forester, it simply seems like an inflated 3-series wagon, in both size and price.
PATRICK BEDARD
I've seen sillier cars. There was an angry, slotted Bizzarrini GT back in 1968 that scraped its belly on the ground like a skulking lizard. The AMC Gremlin, a subcompact created by chopping the useful space out of the compact Hornet, was pretty silly, too. But this BMW X3 is the 21st-century record holder. Especially with the sport-suspension option and six-speed box, BMW seems to have combined the worst features of sports cars and SUVs—the jarring ride, fast-wearing tires, and dinky cargo area of the former with the excessive weight and precious pricing of the latter. For $41,000 you get a sports car on stilts. Mondo silly.
LARRY WEBSTER
A BMW sport-ute had me skeptical from the start, but I grew to appreciate BMW's first effort, the X5. I once used an X5 to tow my race car—at a very comfortable and fast velocity—and once at the track exploited the car's flexibility by using it for a handful of not-too-slow demonstration laps around the course. I couldn't have done both in the 5-series wagon. But I don't think the X3 is any more useful than the 3-series wagon. Plus, the X3 gives up plenty of performance, and it's the worst-riding BMW I've ever driven. Sure, the X3 has a roomier interior, but from a driver's standpoint, it's not even a contest—I'd take the wagon version.
http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews..._x3/index.html
In other words, the X3 won't be much cheaper than the X5, which leads one to wonder why the X3 even exists, but we'll leave that conundrum to BMW's marketing department.
But we're not particularly excited about a second, slightly smaller, slightly less expensive SUV from BMW
http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/art...348583,00.html
I love the BMW X5. Its superb build quality, imperious driving position and on-road dynamics make it one of my favourite off-roaders. The same, however, cannot be said about its smaller brother, the BMW X3.
http://www.caranddriver.com/roadtest...mw-x3-30i.html
If the X3 never rose up from the paper, we'd be quaffing schnapps in its honor. The doubt creeps in out on the road. The otherwise supple 3-series suspension has been radically hardened in the X3, kind of the way they harden ICBM silos. Shod in the rear with the 45-series, W-rated rubber of the optional Sport package, the X3's ride is hard-edged, concussive, and insufferable. Hit a craggy, undulating section of road, and the X3 bucks like a mare with Little Richard's pinky ring stuck under the saddle. Do it at speed, and the X3 is almost as good as a guillotine for testing your neck joints.
And all 3 editors were not fond of it...
RON KIINO
I might have thought more of the X3 had I not driven it back-to-back with a Subaru Forester 2.5XT. Yes, the Bimmer is ritzier, offers more niceties, such as a power liftgate and hill-descent control, and handles and brakes in a league above, but it's more than two seconds slower to 60, a lot harsher in the ride department, and about 15 grand more on the bottom line. And as far as I can tell, it doesn't offer any real advantage in rear-seat space, cargo room, or all-weather traction. By itself, the X3 is an able performer, but next to the Forester, it simply seems like an inflated 3-series wagon, in both size and price.
PATRICK BEDARD
I've seen sillier cars. There was an angry, slotted Bizzarrini GT back in 1968 that scraped its belly on the ground like a skulking lizard. The AMC Gremlin, a subcompact created by chopping the useful space out of the compact Hornet, was pretty silly, too. But this BMW X3 is the 21st-century record holder. Especially with the sport-suspension option and six-speed box, BMW seems to have combined the worst features of sports cars and SUVs—the jarring ride, fast-wearing tires, and dinky cargo area of the former with the excessive weight and precious pricing of the latter. For $41,000 you get a sports car on stilts. Mondo silly.
LARRY WEBSTER
A BMW sport-ute had me skeptical from the start, but I grew to appreciate BMW's first effort, the X5. I once used an X5 to tow my race car—at a very comfortable and fast velocity—and once at the track exploited the car's flexibility by using it for a handful of not-too-slow demonstration laps around the course. I couldn't have done both in the 5-series wagon. But I don't think the X3 is any more useful than the 3-series wagon. Plus, the X3 gives up plenty of performance, and it's the worst-riding BMW I've ever driven. Sure, the X3 has a roomier interior, but from a driver's standpoint, it's not even a contest—I'd take the wagon version.
http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews..._x3/index.html
In other words, the X3 won't be much cheaper than the X5, which leads one to wonder why the X3 even exists, but we'll leave that conundrum to BMW's marketing department.
But we're not particularly excited about a second, slightly smaller, slightly less expensive SUV from BMW
regarding the X3, its terribly overpriced and underperforming, now that you can get a fully loaded 07 RDX 37.5k or a very loaded 07 MDX Sport+Tech 46k which a very loaded X3 will cost, yet it still wont come close to the features/options either SUV has
Last edited by 4TehNguyen; Sep 29, 2006 at 07:05 AM.
... you need your eyes tested.
Get a freakin' Subaru for $10K less!
"The BMW X3 is hard to beat for people who want BMW's heritage look, powertrain and packaging, but desire the flexibility a sport-utility vehicle offers, or vice versa. The xDrive, Dynamic Stability Control and Hill Descent Control combine to offer excellent handling, grip, traction, stability in adverse conditions: on gravel roads, muddy two-tracks and snow-covered backroads. Overall fit is to the marque's standards, but the interior finish is disappointing. Leaving the options boxes unchecked yields an affordable and capable SUV that requires no apology, and judicious checking lets even a cost-conscious shopper have the desired luxuries."
Last edited by bitkahuna; Sep 29, 2006 at 07:55 AM.
CL Community Team
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 17,331
Likes: 210
From: Miami, Florida
The sad thing in Mexico is that an X3 here costs just about as much as an X5 does in the U.S.
BMW X3, Mexico, prices, http://mx.autos.yahoo.com/newcars/bm...l_overview.php
BMW X5, U.S., prices, http://autos.yahoo.com/newcars/model...F?modelId=4636
I don't think it handles too bad...but again the suspension is a POS.
BMW X3, Mexico, prices, http://mx.autos.yahoo.com/newcars/bm...l_overview.php
BMW X5, U.S., prices, http://autos.yahoo.com/newcars/model...F?modelId=4636
I don't think it handles too bad...but again the suspension is a POS.
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