BMW X6 xDrive30d
Base price: $146,600
Powertrain and performance: 3.0-litre turbo-diesel inline six, 195kW/620Nm, 8-speed automatic, AWD, Combined economy 7.1 litres per 100km, 185g/km CO2 (source: RightCar), 0-100kmh 6.5 seconds.
Vital statistics: 4935mm long, 1694mm high, 2975mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 580 to 1530 litres, 21-inch alloy wheels with 275/40 front tyres, 315/35 rear.
We like: Superb engine, loaded with tech, the grille lights up!
We don’t like: Brittle ride at speed, old fashioned interior, the grille lights up…
As sure as night follows day, it was inevitable that the polarising “coupe” version of the BMW X5 would come shortly after its launch just over a year back. And now it is here.
The BMW X6 is bigger than ever, has more swoops and creases and – for the first time ever – an illuminated grille. Yes, you read that right…
So what’s new?
In terms of it being a new X6, all of it, yet we are quite familiar with most of it. That is because the X6 is literally an X5 with a weird roofline and less boot space, and the latest X5 has been with us since the end of 2018, so there shouldn’t be any surprises here. And there aren’t.
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On the inside it is pure X5, with the same slightly conservative BMW dash and interior layout, which is starting to feel a bit behind the likes of Mercedes-Benz and Audi interior design, but is still an impressively high quality thing of comfort that is packed to the gills with equipment and the latest technology.
Oh, yeah – and, of course, that illuminated grille. And, yes, it is as awful, brilliant, unnecessary and essential as it sounds. That’s right – none of that sentence makes sense, and neither does an illuminated grille. But that’s where we are now.
How does it all come together?
That illuminated grille actually sums up the X6 perfectly
BMW has taken on board all the criticism of its increasingly massive grilles (and, indeed, the X6’s unwavering claim of there being such a thing as an “SUV coupe”) and dismissed it entirely, leaning hard into the whole “overbearing face” concept by adding lighting. The X6 knows you don’t like its face and it doesn’t care. It probably doesn’t like yours either.
But looks are subjective, and you stylistic likes and dislikes are your own, so the X6 is still very much a “love it or hate it” affair.
What is not so polarising, however, is the fantastic 3.0-litre turbo-diesel inline six under the xDrive30d’s bonnet – rivalling Mercedes-Benz’s utterly brilliant return to inline six form in terms of refinement and muscular, smooth power, the BMW six adds a layer of aural enjoyment, with a pleasing muted snarl under acceleration.
It is a thoroughly wonderful engine that is perfectly complimented by the slick 8-speed transmission.
Dynamically, the X6 is a mixed bag, however, with a firm yet pleasant around town ride that falls apart as speed rises – at open road speeds the X6’s ride becomes very brittle and fidgety over coarse surfaces (ie: all new Zealand roads), something that quickly becomes grating.
And while the X6 undeniably handles well for a two-tonne SUV, it is still a two-tonne SUV, regardless of its “coupe-like” sporting pretensions and it feels every inch of its 2 metre width as you pound it down a winding back road.
Any other cars I should consider?
The X6 may have kicked all this SUV coupe silliness off, but it certainly doesn’t have the segment to itself any more.
The most obvious direct competitor is Mercedes-Benz’s GLE Coupe, but a new wrinkle is Porsche’s Cayenne Coupe that manages to buck the usual coupe SUV trend and actually look rather good.
Audi calls its sexy Q8 a coupe – even though it doesn’t have a coupe-like roofline – and it is slightly more expensive, but looks awesome, has a better ride and an utterly amazing interior. It’s engine isn’t anywhere near as good though…