X3-based SUV coupé aims to cash in on
the X6 formula as it reaches UK roads
BMW considers the X4 a tried and tested
formula. And a profitable one. It’s primed to snare one in four buyers of the
X3, a proportion based on the success of the X6, its progenitor. For a car
whose fitness for purpose was fundamentally questioned in these pages five
years ago – and viciously lampooned elsewhere – that seems a remarkable record
to bequeath. Of course, the X6 seems far less cruel and unusual these days. An
ensuing half decade of crossover overdose has conditioned a kinder reaction to
the idea of a very large, four-door, four-seat SUV coupé.
The
X4 follows the template of the bigger X6, not only in its coupé-inspired
styling but also in the more sporting tune of its chassis
Any residual consternation felt now is
probably reserved for the car’s obnoxious on-road presence, a problem that its
cheaper duplicate mostly negates by simply being smaller and therefore fitting
more sensibly into British lanes and parking spaces. Needless to say, the
idiosyncrasies remain. This is an X3 underneath, with mostly everything carried
over (including its all-diesel engine line-up in the UK) except for the body,
which is primped, puffed up and then flattened in the name of sporting
pretension.
It’s more expensive than the X3 (there’s a
$6,060 gap between virtually identical variants in the SE, xLine and M Sport
trim line-up), is very marginally better equipped and lacks a two-wheel-drive
entry-level version, because all-xDrive status is essential to its identity as
an SUV – especially as some of the utility has so clearly been removed inside.
The roofline’s swan dive towards the chest-high bootlid will again trouble the
hairline of anyone over the national average height, while the boot capacity
shrinks by a modest 50 litres with the seats up and a more serious 200 litres
with them down.
You
sit 20mm lower than in the X3 and this gives a more satisfying driving
position; some plastics look sub-3-series grade, though
Still, at least there are three seats to
flop forward this time (or three belts, at any rate) and a 20mm lowering of the
hip point contributes to a satisfying driving position up front. As with the
X6, being closer to the road is a prominent theme. A 36mm reduction in height
has brought the centre of gravity down and the chassis has been reformatted to
better suit the coupé aesthetic. The subsequent transformation is, by now,
instantly familiar.
Despite still being comparatively tall, the
X4 uses the huge grip being generated underneath and the speed of its variable
steering rack to gouge direction changes out of the road surface. The
torque-shuffling heft and bemusing nimbleness are held together by ruthless
body control – especially in Sport mode, where the dampers disregard pliability
entirely for jowl-quivering levels of tautness.
Front
seat passengers have plenty of room, but taller passengers in the rear may
struggle for headroom
Teamed, in the case of our test car, with
the steady fizz of BMW’s 3.0-litre straight six, the xDrive30d makes for a
consummate hot hatch botherer. The pity, shame and unfortunate thing is that,
much like the X6, it somewhat struggles to be much of anything else. Despite
defaulting on start-up to its softest Comfort setting, the X4 (admittedly on M
Sport suspension, with 19-inch wheels) can’t ever completely relax on its
fettled springs. There’s a slight irritability about the ride around town – not
significant enough to jostle you unreasonably, but well short of the
catseye-negating civility that one would expect from an upmarket SUV and
certainly at odds with the low-speed amiability being dispensed by the
free-flowing powertrain.
A
40-20-40 split rear bench helps to increase boot space to around 500 litres
Around this central niggle, others orbit.
We originally chided the X6 for not being lighter and more economical. Well,
the X4 still weighs the best part of two tonnes and the improvement in the
official combined fuel economy between our test car and its X6 equivalent is a
measly 0.8mpg. There’s also rather a lot of wind noise at motorway speeds and a
smidgen too much engine noise below it, and some of the switchgear and trim
plastic looks less expensive than those found on the 3-series.
All of which may very well not add up to
anything. The fact that most of the X4’s inherent drawbacks (and strengths) are
reoccurring items from the X6’s balance sheet simply confirms that BMW has
followed its own blueprint to the letter. As the conveyor of a sassier SUV
image, the more streamlined X4 will most probably prevail. Moreover, if that’s
to be the main tent pole of its appeal, the single-mindedness of even the M
Sport’s ride and handling need not be a hindrance – nor even the premium that
applies to it.
Despite
its size, the X4 corners with the agility of a smaller car
Instead, the likely stumbling block,
specifically where the xDrive30d M Sport is concerned, is two-tiered. Firstly,
there’s the xDrive20d, its yet-to-be-tried four-pot sibling, which manages to
be more affordable, cheaper to run and, in less aggressive trim, feasibly nicer
to drive. Secondly, there’s the competition, topped, in this case, by the new
Porsche Macan Diesel S – another scaled-down successor to an even more
lucrative template. Somewhat ironically, it lacks the X4’s under-bonnet
potency. But that probably won’t matter. This is, after all, a desirability
contest. And, unfortunately for BMW, above $75,760 it might just find that the
better-rounded and prettier Porsche has more of it.
