By Ewan Kennedy, Marque Motoring
The BMW X1 xDrive 2.0i is an impressive piece of machinery from the upmarket German company that has been at the forefront of automotive engineering for many decades.
The X1 is the smallest model in BMW’s SUV range with five larger models on offer. Some of these are what we would call SUV bodies, others are coupe-like in their shape. It’s quite large, indeed being it’s almost the size of the BMW X3 of a few generations back.
STYLING
It’s an attractive vehicle, with a very large front grille that’s split vertically down the centre to follow the design theme that has been used for many BMW generations. On either side of this grille are headlights that run well back beside the bonnet, gradually increasing height as they get closer to the windscreen.
The roof is almost flat from the top of the windscreen to the rear of the X1 and the rear window is close to being vertical, hence our placing it into the SUV class rather than the coupe class.
Below the upper grille is a large black lower section that’s a little wider than the upper grille. Outside of this lower area the colour of the rest of the body is used. It all ties in very nicely.
INTERIOR.
Styling inside the X1 is excellent, with a standout dash area that extends almost two thirds of the way across the front. This looks great and was praised by all who rode with us during our test week.
The front seats have side supports designed to provide hold the driver and front passenger nicely when the X1’s taken for spirted driving in twisty roads. Okay so it’s not a sports machine, but it comes pretty close so these seats make a lot of sense.
There is seating for five, with the rear seats in a 40:20:40 setup. Seating for three average sized adults in the rear is fine, but if there are five largish people back there it’s a bit tight.
The backrests of the three rear seats can be folded down individually to give a choice of passenger / luggage space. They backrests don’t fold completely flat, which would rule it out for us because we have dog and he could not lie on a flat floor.
INFOTAINMENT
Display is through what BMW calls its Live Cockpit Professional using a combination of a 10.25-inch instrument display in front of the driver and a 10.7-inch high-resolution curved touchscreen in the centre of the dashboard.
Satellite navigation is standard and can be set either through the touchscreen or via the My BMW app.
There are four USB-C ports, two in the front centre console and two in the rear centre console.
There’s a smartphone wireless charging pad in the front console while both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are wireless.
The 100W six speaker sound system of the BMW X1 is great to listen to, though we must admit to either turning down the volume or even muting it so we could enjoy the sound of the engine.
ENGINES / TRANSMISSIONS
The BMW X1 xDrive20i is powered by a four-cylinder TwinPower Turbo engine generating 150 kW and 300 Nm.
The X1 sDrive18i has a three-cylinder 1.5-litre engine with outputs of 115 kW and 230 Nm. We’re booked into a road test of the 18i shortly and will provide a full report at that time.
Transmission in the 20i is through a seven-speed double clutch automatic with power being is sent to all four wheels via BMW’s intelligent all-wheel-drive xDrive system.
SAFETY
Active protection features include front, side and head airbags, inner-vented front and rear disc brakes with brake-wear sensors, central locking with electronic immobiliser and crash sensor, dynamic braking lights, braking assistant, cornering brake control and dynamic traction control.
Driver assistant safety features add active cruise control with Stop&Go function, head-up display. Driving Assistant Plus adds blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, lane change warning, front collision warning with brake intervention, rear crossing traffic warning and rear collision prevention.
There’s also parking assistant with front and rear active park distance control, reversing assistant and surround view camera.
The BMW Drive Recorder system films the vehicle’s surrounding for up to 40 seconds to document dangerous driving situations in road traffic
DRIVING
Ahh, It’s a BMW and I’ve always enjoyed driving them. The engine is good, though a slightly faster response would have been nice at times. Perhaps that’s because I’ve been driving a lot of electric or hybrid vehicles lately and have become accustomed to the instant response they provide when you push that pedal on the right.
On the other hand, I’ve been driving a lot of non-BMW vehicles and their handling is simply not in the same class as that of the BMW. There’s no doubt that the Asians and Koreans in particular have been trying to get their handling up to the same standard as that of BMWs but haven’t been able to do it. Keep going you guys and gals in the BMW and you’ll always stay ahead of them.
The BMW X1 xDrive 2.0i is a smallish SUV rather than a sports sedan but has handling that’s delightful. It answers virtually instantly to movements of the steering wheel and sends feedback through the wheel to immediately let you know what’s happening.
It holds the road at speeds well above the speeds most drivers would attempt and simply carries on around the bends almost as though they weren’t there.
Ride comfort is very good, which is something you seldom get in cars with the sporty handling it provides.
Would I buy a BMW X1 xDrive 2.0i? Yes, though the price tag is probably going to put it out of reach – unless my numbers come up on one of the tickets we buy…
SUMMARY
The BMW X1 xDrive 2.0i is an exceptional vehicle with the sort of features that appeal to those who love driving but at the same time need the convenience of practicality that suits them.
