Bucket Seat: BMW X4 - First Impressions

There's a comforting feeling when you get invited to a day launch in your home town. I'm not quite sure what it is about local launches that have me so relaxed, it could be that the roads we're about to travel on are familiar to me, that I know where to push the cars limits and where to be-careful, or it could be the fact that I don't have to travel on the dreaded "red eye" flight to the launch destination. Whatever it was, I was at ease last Friday when I was invited, along with a host of other motoring journalists to sample BMW's all new X4.

Now for many, the X4 would be an odd car, and I can see where they might be coming from. It's based on the X3 which is a family SUV but made in a sports coupe design, which see's the roof slanted and given a sport back rear end. With the ever growing trend of the market demanding for more crossover options, manufacturers can only head the call of the buyer I suppose and with that you have to salute BMW in it's efforts as global trendsetters, if I may call them that, for developing this once unique but very appealing segment of the "SAC" (Sport Activity Coupe). We've seen many others follow the trend of the BMW X4 since it's introduction to the market in 2014 which sold approximately 200,000 units worldwide, and while BMW may welcome competition, they have to stay ahead of the game and that is exactly what I came to find out during this launch.

The setting for the morning, Durban's iconic Oyster Box, while sipping my cappuccino and enjoying my savoury croissant, watching the waves break on the shoreline, I was wondering if my day would be as predictable as the tide that morning but rest assured it was anything but. See, having the launch in my back yard gave me an advantage over the journo's from outside Durban. While they were thinking about all the sleep they missed out on, to get to the airport on time for their flight, I got in a bit early to get a get a jump on what models were present for the launch. Being a very sporty orientated vehicle, the X4 is being launch in just 3 engine variants for now. A 2 litre petrol, 2 litre diesel and the range topping M40i (3 litre Twin-Power Turbo) engine of which there were two present. Obviously I threw my stuff in the back of one of the M40i's and took the keys before anyone could see, which made me feel a bit smug. Well in my defense, the chances of seeing the M40i in the Durban press fleet next year are slim to none so I had to get a sample of it at the launch.

After a brief presentation on the X4, highlighting the significant changes and differences to the new models, as well as giving us some basic statistics on the market, it was time to hit the road. Don't worry, the presentation wasn't boring but I'll fill you in on the important bits as we go along. Now for those who have never been on a launch, you normally pair up with another journalist and your journey to your lunch time stop is split in half. I opted to drive the latter half seeing that it had a more challenging route on what I thought would be quieter roads to navigate this behemoth. My driving experience started in Eston, where I was greeted with wide open fields making it's way into the hills and forests of the  KZN Midlands. The peace and tranquility which is synonymous with the area was harshly disturbed by the violent gurgling and crackling of the twin exhausts from the mighty X4 M40i. The engine is quite raucous as well, but in a good way, it makes all the right sounds that make the hairs on the back of your neck stand when you put it in Sport mode.

There's no other word to describe the X4 M40i other than a beast, and while I drove the X3 with the very same engine, the X4's lower body, wider rear and longer rear axel give it so much more life. It literally eats up the tar in front of it and with its solid stance, it attacks corners with force and almost feels like it bends the road to suit its path. With BMW's xDrive system, the car picks up which wheels are losing traction when gripping and alternates power to the ones that need it, helping you propel through the twists and bends. That coupled with the reverberating noise from the exhaust just makes you want to keep on going, even if the roars make the wildlife in the area disperse in fear. I was actually quite sad when my route ended up going through the bustling metropolis of Pietermaritzburg which meant I had to tone things done in the M40i but it also gave the car a chance to relax as we navigated the lunch time traffic in EcoPro mode. 

One would say the car has a Jekyll and Hyde complex, but we're in 2018, so let me bring the reference up to speed and say it has a Banner and Hulk complex. In the traffic, while in EcoPro mode, the car was calm and collected but you just know it doesn't take much to let the beast out. The journey to the lunch stop involved some dirt road driving. Now with a car as such, 3 litre, twin power turbo, sitting on 21" rims, not the ideal environment you would think? But that's where you'd be wrong, to quote another Journalist whom attended the launch earlier in the week, "I've never gone this fast on dirt!". Yup, the X4 M40i made minced meat of that gravel track, it unleashed the inner rally driver in me, all those hours spent playing Colin McRae on the PC as a child finally came into fruition as I left a trail of dust behind me while racing to the Karkloof Safari Lodge, to satisfy my appetite that was built up while driving this mighty car.

While sitting at lunch, contemplating whether I should skip dessert and rush out on the first shuttle to secure the M40i on the route back, I figured, if it brought me so much joy, imagine what it would do for the next person. So I guess you could say dessert won that one, but it gave me the opportunity to try out another engine variant and one I believe will be quite important to the X4 line up, the 20d. There's no secret that this engine is one of my favourites from the BMW Group, it offers the best of both worlds while making your trips the filling station less frequent. The drive back was quite the opposite with the diesel, not that it wasn't as fun, for obvious reasons it was much more tame but at the same time still quite enjoyable. It gave me time to appreciate what the car offered on the whole. BMW are becoming more of the giving type now, by throwing in a few more freebies in the X4. Like Business SatNav, BMW Connected drive which can be controlled by an app via your mobile device. This allows you to check on critical information on the car, like fuel levels, tyre pressure levels, oil levels, etc and also help you book your car in should there be a problem or a service is required. There's also a few cool things you can do with the app, like pre-set your air-conditioning, so the car is nice and cool when you jump in. 

Coming from a person who was not the biggest fan of the original X4, I got to say that there isn't much not to like in the new one. While it may be based on the new X3, there is some major variances in the mechanics of the two, so in essence, the X4 isn't just an X3 with a sexier bum. Yes, BMW have done a stunning job on that rear end, it flows so well and with that rear wing that sits above the windshield, just adds that much character to the overall package. A good thing to note is that this new design of the rear is something we will become used to with the upcoming Z4 sporting a similar design and from the spy shots of the new 3 Series which is due to show its face soon, it too will have its rear lights in a similar style to that of the X4. It this is an indication of what we can expect from the next line of BMW X models, the future for this line is very bright and very eXciting. 

X4 xDrive 20i	X4 xDrive 20d	X4 M40i
135kW	140kW	265kW
290Nm	400Nm	500Nm
R843 000*	R843 000*	R1 132 800*

 *Base model prices. 

BMW will have the M40d available to purchase from the first quarter of 2019.

Bucket Seat: 2018 BMW X4 - First Impressions

BMW dropped details and official pictures on its upcoming X4 SAC (Sports Activity Coupe) today and informed us that it will be heading to our shores later this year. While the first generation X4 wasn't the greatest looking vehicle from the BMW stable, it certainly didn't too badly in sales with approximately 200,000 units sold world wide since its launch in 2014. It seems that people were tempted by this mid ranged sport style SUV, I suppose the appeal came from it's coupe like form and didn't make it look too much like a soccer moms car like the X3. Mind you, the new X3 has improved on the looks department tenfold and I'm glad that the new X4 takes many design cues from it but someone in the design department at BMW HQ threw the design guide out the window when it came to the rear design because it looks like nothing we've ever seen from the Germans and it looks fantastic!

After reading the short version of the media release, which really isn't short, BMW are quite enthusiastic about the efficiency figures from the new X4. it ranges from 9.0-5.4L/100km across the range. Quite impressive for a big car like this, BMW says the car delivers individuality, dynamism and innovation in greater doses than before and is here to write the next chapter in the success story of the first ever Sports Activity Coupe. The cars design is more pronounced and muscular, it also has increased in size by 81mm in length, 54mm added to the wheelbase and extra 37mm of width. Design wise, the front is very high and commanding while the car slopes into a sleeker look and ending off with that sexy rear end. The front end is taken straight from the X3 with the kidney grille now three-dimensional in look at quite bigger than normal, while the front does look nice, I just feel BMW could have done some tweaking to make it look a bit different. 

Anyway, there are going to be a few variants of engines to choose from, and from the sounds of it, SA will be getting most of them this time around, including the big boy 4.0L in both petrol and diesel. the M40i will be the range topping model, as with the X3 and its maximum output will be 265kW producing 360bhp with a claimed 9.2L/100km. The range topping diesel engine is the M40d making 240kW and 326bhp but the torque output on this one is a factor to keep an eye on. Interior on this car is ace, again, carbon copy of the X3 which means it has all the nice gadgets and features. I can state all of them but it will be practically what I said about the X3 but trust me, its all good, obviously most of the cool stuff is on the dreaded optional extras list, which comes at a price, but like I always said, if I had the money, I would get them all. 

Bucket Seat: 2017 BMW X3 - First Impressions

The past two days I found myself in the Western Cape, sampling one of BMW's updated offering in their X Line, the all new X3. You couldn't have set the scene any better, blue skies, greenery and mountains around us, all that was left to do was for us to go out and ruin this tranquility with the noise of a burbling 3 liter, straight 6 roaring it's way through the countryside. But before I get to that, lets dabble in a bit of history about the BMW X3, seeing that this is the 3rd generation of this mid-range "SAV" (Suburban Activity Vehicle), seeing how the previous two generations fared in the segment is always handy. Since launching their first X model, the BMW X5 in 1999, the company has so over 5.4 million units world wide, in fact BMW have said that every 1 in 3 model sold globally is an X model. The first BMW X3 rolled off the line in 2003 and to be honest, it wasn't very pretty. The size was perfect for small families who wanted something with a bit more space, the raised ride height had it's advantages but other than that, it wasn't for everyone. The second generation was better to look at, offered a whole lot more and became quite a popular option in the segment, this helped push sales to 1.5 million units sold in the world for the first and second generation models, so from 5 X models on the market, the X3 contributed to 28% of sales, not bad.

Coming back to the new X3, first things first, whats different? Well the short answer would be "everything", no seriously this is entirely a new vehicle. The design language borrows a lot from the current gen 7 and 5 series, from the outside to the inside. The X3 will be offered in 3 packages, xLine, Luxury Line and M Sport, all of which add their own distinct differences to the car but all look great. At launch the X3 is available in 4 engine variants, 2 petrol and 2 diesel. Exterior highlights include the xenon lights being ditched and LED's added as standard with the option of having adaptive LED's for a little bit more, the rear also gets LED lights with a 3D effect. The kidney grille is more larger and prominent, as seen in the new X7 concept, looks like a trend in the X models to come. The X3 also has grown, it is bigger than the previous, not by much but millimeters here and there also the X3 now has bigger wheels ranging from 18" to 21" which BMW say are capable of light off-roading which we put to the test on the launch. Moving inside, BMW have really outdone themselves with this interior. Luxury and premium feel from floor to ceiling, A 10.2 inch screen along with a screen instrument cluster, active lane assist which steers you back into the lane should you veer off. 3 zone climate control, with the front two have their own temperature settings and the rear having their own. There's a lot of other cool things on the inside, like the revised full colour heads up display, the professional SatNav being as accurate to the last meter and the colours and trims available for the X3 will have you astounded. 

On the launch, BMW had 3 variants for us to drive, starting off with the 2.0d Diesel and 3.0 Diesel xDrive and the range topping M40i. Interesting to note that all X3's will come with xDrive with the option of sDrive later next year. Day 1 saw us take a long route through the Western Cape with a mixture of tar and gravel roads, lots of climbing up mountains and for this I opted for the M40i. Plenty of power, lots of grunt and BMW have added a noisy exhaust and boy does it sound good! The power is derived from the M Performance TwinPower turbo technology which has a Twinscroll turbo charger which produces a whopping 265kW and a Max torque of 500Nm. This proved to be awesome while climbing many of the mountain passes. On the gravel the car seemed to be surprisingly at home, in comfort mode the ride was smooth and quiet given the the type of terrain we were on. The xDrive system really works well as I felt it kick in on the loose sections, correcting the car before something bad could happen. It made me look like a rally driving pro. I also got the chance to sample the base level 2.0d, again handled just as well on both road and off road, but with that added beautiful fuel economy. 

The new X3 is a special car for us in South Africa, as from April 2018, plant Rosslyn will start manufacturing the model for local sales as well as exporting majority for Europe. This is a massive feather in the cap for the local industry as it has saw the German manufacturer invest quite a hefty some in upgrades to the plant to transition the assembly of the 3 Series to the X3 and now a further R160 million to increase production capacity by 10%. Rosslyn will be one of three other plants in the world making the X3, with the others being Spartenburg in Germany and Shenyang in China. Selected staff at the Rosslyn plant were sent for training for the new model and a new training center will be opening in Feb of next year for the rest of the plant personnel. Overall the new X3 really seems like the complete package for a mid-sized SUV, it really has moved up a notch in the premium category and offers so much more than the outgoing model and which justifies the price tag. With the base level xD20d starting off at R684,200 and the top of the range M40i coming in at R991,100.