Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Image: BMW
Ahead of the local launch of BMW’s third generation X1, Peter Frost drove the X1 sDrive18d through the Austrian Alps and down the Balkan Peninsula.
Image: BMW
As car prices rise and even well-heeled buyers are forced to buy down, the compact executive SUV segment has become increasingly competitive. BMW is only too aware that their ‘entry level’ offering has a new, demanding audience, buyers used to a certain X3 sophistication. No surprise then that Munich has poured much into the latest X1, due in SA by the end of the year.
Design first, because style is paramount in this segment. In the metal the smallest of Munich’s SUVs is anything but, 4,5 metres long, as sizable as the first generation X3. It has real presence now, Domagoj Dukec’s masculine, broad-shouldered body clearly X-familial; notice the by-now familiar parrot fish grille (smaller than recent iterations), high waistline, squared off haunches. On the company’s latest UKL platform it is longer, wider, higher and broader than its predecessor – arguably for the first time a genuine load-carrier as well as a lifestyle statement.
Image: BMW
Inside, the news is even better. Lead interior designer Daniel Mayerle has done a first-class job of melding form and function – a couple of hours with the car is enough to confirm segment-best standards for interior fit and finish, as well as space and practicality. Neither Mercedes GLA nor Audi Q3 can compete with the quality of plastics, touch gear and peripherals. Seats too, which are new and supremely comfortable. The flat-folding rear bench features a 40/20/40 split and behind it is 540 litres of boot space, notably up from the previous generation. Folded flat that number jumps to 1600 litres, usefully square for bikes and prams.
Climb aboard and there’s an airiness to the cabin, more full-sized SUV than crossover, plenty of head, shoulder and elbow room for driver and all passengers. The windscreen is massive, offering a panoramic view of the road ahead, and also giving the impression of a far larger car.
Press the starter button in the centre console and screens ahead and to the left come to life – new X1 is a comprehensively digital space and one few BMW aficionados will recognise – it’s unlike anything seen to date. The absence of buttons (there is no iDrive rotary controller for the infotainment system or dials for air-conditioning) will unnerve some, but the good news is the large, curved 14,9-inch touchscreen works well, the latest Operating System 8 is fast, intuitive and good-looking to boot, fonts and graphics pretty as well as legible. Neat touches abound, such as the vertical wireless phone charging tray.
Image: BMW
Pull back the tiny, Audi-esque stubby gear lever, throttle up and the 110 kW/360Nm 2.0-litre diesel pulls well enough, if not a mite roughly. Certainly it’s no match for the smoother, more sophisticated 1950cc Mercedes GLA diesel unit. On the German autobahn, the sophistication of the package is evident, wind, road and mechanical noise is well suppressed. Those unrestricted sections did however show up the acceleration limits of the 18d; chasing the ubiquitous Audi RS4, even in Sport mode, is a fruitless exercise. But turn off, head for the Austrian Tirol and the switchbacks provide a rewarding playground for the nicely balanced SUV. The 8-speed auto box has a decent brain, so cog swapping is largely a hassle-free experience – no hunting – and the increased wheelbase (and track) plant it firmly in the twisties. The extra bulk and upright stance is felt, but so is that quintessential BMW solidity, grip and weighted steering, meaning it’s satisfying to command up hill and down dale, all day.
On the bumpy backroads of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the X1 sDrive18d’s supple suspension worked a treat and as the byways got ever narrower, the car’s size seemingly increased. It’s out here that you realise the limitations of a sizeable SUV, which, happily, X1 isn’t. Big enough to play the role of tourer, compact enough not to prove unwieldy in the rural slalom that is Bosnia. It’s not gleefully exciting to chuck around – bear in mind it’s playing to the broadest possible audience, so ride is excellent at the expense of outright handling. That’s to be expected at this end of the model range. It will be interesting to see how the warmer X1s stack up.
Twelve hundred kilometres and three days later the not-so-little X1 had won me over, not least because it had managed a commendable 5,0l/100km for the trip. The marque will bring the full electric to our shores and, on current evidence across the rest of the range, it should be a cracker. But there’s no getting away from the real-world advantages of the diesel sDrive18d. Handsome, practical, frugal, decent enough to drive and sporting plenty of badge appeal. The X1 is now exactly the right size and should sell like hot apfelstrudel up a cold Austrian Alp.
BMW X1 sDrive18d FAST FACTS
Price: R790 617
Engine: 2,0-litre, 4-cylinder, turbodiesel
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 110 kW
Torque: 360 N.m
0-100 km/h: 8,9 seconds
Top speed: 210 km/h
Fuel Consumption: 4,9 L/100 km
Rivals: Mercedes-Benz GLA, Audi Q3
Keyword: BMW X1 sDrive18d – first drive review in the Balkan peninsula