BMW X1 2013 Review

BMW X1

What we liked:
>> More refined interior and exterior design
>> Punchy, efficient new engines and eight-speed auto
>> Best-in-class rear-drive dynamics

OVERVIEW

Inexplicably, despite pioneering the premium compact SUV segment, the X1 also continues to be outsold by BMW’s own larger X models, including the X3 and X5, but BMW says that’s a reflection of its larger SUVs’ resonance with Australians than any shortcomings of the X1.

BMW Australia expects the latest iteration to continue to attract around 1500 sales per annum and about eight per cent of total BMW Australia sales, making the 3 Series Touring-based X1 the fifth-best selling BMW behind the 3 Series, X5, 1 Series and X3.

X models comprise up to 40 per cent of BMW sales in Australia, where more than 50,000 of them have been sold since 2003, and more than half of all X1s sold go to first-time BMW customers. The X1 also attracts more female customers here than any other BMW, except the 1 Series.

BMW has sold about 300,000 X1s globally since 2009, including around 6000 in Australia, where the skew away from passenger wagons to crossovers is almost the exact opposite of Europe. For the first time, the X1 is now also available in the US, where 50 per cent of all BMW X models are sold.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT

Since then, however, it has fitted all X1s with floor mats as standard, increasing pricing by a further $400 across the board.

That brings base X1 pricing to $44,900 plus on-road costs for the sDrive 18i manual, $46,900 for the sDrive 201 manual, $54,900 for the xDrive 20d manual and $58,200 for the flagship xDrive 28i manual. An automatic transmission adds $3500 to the price of all variants.

Standard equipment has been increased across the range and now includes cruise control with braking function, rear parking sensors, climate-control, power/heated mirrors, foglights, LED tail-lights, chromed exhaust outlets, a leather-clad steering wheel, trip computer, five-speaker AM/FM/CD sound system, automatic headlights and wipers, and Bluetooth and USB connectivity.

Both sDrive models ride as standard on 17-inch V-spoke alloy wheels, while both xDrives wear 18-inch star-spoke alloys.

Among the host of optional extras are hard-drive Business and Professional navigation systems (both with iDrive controller, voice control, audio streaming and mobile phone preparation) with 6.5 and 8.8-inch hi-res colour screens for $2900 and $4500 respectively.

Also on the extensive options list is an 11-speaker 340-Watt Harman/Kardon surround-sound system ($2500), Comfort Access keyless entry ($1250), a panoramic glass sunroof ($3000), three auto-dimming mirrors ($700), powered front seats ($2400), High-Beam Assistant ($320), internet functionality ($200), adaptive headlights with cornering function ($940, in conjunction with the $2050 Xenon headlights) and, surprisingly, a reversing camera for an extra $900 - but only in conjunction with front parking sensors ($715) and one of the navigation systems. Metallic paint is a rude $1700 extra too.

New to the X1 range are new xLine, Sport Line and M Sport packages. Priced at $3200 for sDrive models and $4300 for sDrives, the xLine pack comprises a Titanium Silver matt-finished grille, roof-rails and front, rear and side body inserts, 18-inch Y-spoke alloys, ‘BMW xLine’ door sills, a multifunction leather-clad sports steering wheel, ambient lighting, Dakota leather trim with two exclusive colour options (Terra and Oyster), X-embossed head restraints, Dark Copper interior trim strips with matching leather floor mat piping and, as a further option, Fineline Bay matt cabin highlights.

The Sport Line pack costs $2300 (xDrive: $3300) and includes the same exterior elements plus wing mirrors in high-gloss black, black chromed exhaust outlets, 18-inch double-spoke bi-colour alloys, ‘BMW Sport’ door sills, anthracite seat trim with coral red accents, a leather-trimmed sports steering wheel and gearshifter with red stitching, high-gloss black interior trim, red floor mat piping, ambient lighting and, as a further option, two leather seat trim colours and aluminium cabin highlights.

The X1’s M Sport pack costs $6700 (xDrive: $6900) and comprises an aggressive bodykit, high-gloss rear diffuser, rood-rails and side window surrounds, 18-inch M alloys (with the option of 19s), Alcantara/cloth seat trim, an M Sport steering wheel and gearshifter, anthracite headlining, aluminium trim, M door sills, deletable M Sport suspension and, on xDrive models, Performance Control, which brakes the inside rear wheel in corners to counteract all-wheel drive understeer and costs $400 on regular xDrive models.

As we reported when it debuted at the New York motor show in April, the facelifted X1 brings only subtle exterior changes, including a new front bumper with less matt-black and more body-colour paint, alloy-look side skirt inserts, repeaters in the wing mirrors and resculpted twin-headlights with 'chromed eyebrows' and, when specified with the optional Xenon lights, distinctive white LED corona rings.

The silver rear skid plate replaces more matt surfaces by kicking up further at the rear, where LED tail-lights replace halogen clusters, and there are new wheel designs (now up to 19-inch) and four new paint colours, including Midnight Blue, Mineral Grey, Glacier Silver and Valencia Orange form the M3.

Inside, the more upmarket look continues with new touches like a high-gloss black finish for the centre console, more dashboard detailing including silver air-vent surrounds and glossy cup-holder surrounds.

Changes under the bonnet are more comprehensive, and where three of the four turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engines are new and, while some diesel Q5 and Evoque models remain manual-only, all X1 engines are available with both six-speed manual and eight-speed automatic transmissions, the latter replacing the superseded six-speed auto.

Australia’s X1 continues to be available in two rear-wheel drive ‘sDrive’ variants and two all-wheel drive ‘xDrive’ guises.

However, while sDrive models remain available with low-output petrol and diesel engines, the sDrive 18d diesel replaces the sDrive 18i petrol as the entry-level model, and the xDrive28i replaces the xDrive 23d as the X1 flagship.

The X1’s all-wheel drive system adds 105kg to the kerb weight of the rear-drive sDrive models, which weight as little as 1485kg, are cheaper, more efficient and account for 75 per cent of sales.

The fresh all-aluminium diesel engine in the new entry-level sDrive 18d packs 105kW/350Nm and accelerates the X1 to 100km/h in 9.6 seconds (9.9 seconds for the auto.) while consuming just 4.9L/100km (5.0L/100km for the auto.), making it more efficient and quicker than both the 103kW Q3 2.0 TDI and 110kW Evoque TD4.

The rear-drive sDrive 20i comes with a new turbo-petrol engine from the 320i, replacing the sDrive 20d and delivering 135kW (up 23 per cent on the outgoing 18i) and 270Nm of torque, allowing it to sprint to 100km/h in 7.4 seconds (7.7 seconds for the auto.) and consume 6.9L/100km (6.7L/100km for the auto.).

In the all-wheel drive line-up, the upgraded xDrive 20d offers 135kW (up 5kW) and 380Nm (up 30Nm), while sprinting to 100km/h in 8.1 seconds (8.4 seconds for the auto.) and consuming 5.5L/100km (5.4L/100km for the auto.) – down five per cent from 5.8L/100km.

Topping the revised X1 range is the xDrive 28i, which employs the new 180kW/350Nm 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four from the Z4 and 328i, making it 12 per cent more powerful and 16 per cent more efficient than the old sDrive 18i at 7.8L/100km (7.3L/100km for the auto.), and able to hit 100km/h in 6.1 seconds.

BMW says that makes the top-shelf xDrive 28i quicker than both the 155kW six-cylinder Q3 2.0 TFSI and 177kW Evoque Si4, but less efficient than the Audi.

All models are now equipped with fuel-saving idle-stop, brake energy regeneration and ECO PRO functions and the X1 continues to feature an electrically assisted Servotronic speed-dependent power steering system.

Unlike the Q3 and Evoque, the X1 comes with a 40:20:40-split folding rear seatback that also reclines in 10 steps by up to 31 degrees, increasing comfort and making more flexible the 420-litre boot space, which extends to 1350 litres with the rear seats folded flat.

That’s slightly less than the Q3, which offers a 460-litre boot and 1365 litres of total cargo space, while the five-door Evoque beats both Germans with a total of 1445 litres.

SAFETY

All-wheel drive models also come with Hill Descent Control and of course all models offer twin front and front-side airbags, side curtain airbags, and three-point seatbelts and adjustable head restraints for all five occupants.

Seatbelt pretensioners and force-limiters are fitted up front, along with ISOFIX child seat mounts in the rear, and the X1 has achieved a five-star EuroNCAP safety rating.

A surprise omission from the standard safety kit is a reversing camera, which BMW says is negated by rear parking sensors and large window areas. In fact, it claims the likelihood of a reversing incident is far greater in a passenger sedan or wagon than a high-riding SUV, and that SUVs are over-represented in such statistics because they’re so popular and more likely to be purchased by families.

COMPETITORS

Of course, while Mercedes-Benz continues to develop its all-new A-Class-based GLA, the X1’s only other German rival is the Q3, which opens exactly $100 lower at $44,800 for the Q3 2.0 TDI 2WD. The top-spec Q3 2.0 TFSI quattro petrol comes in at $56,000 -- $2200 less than the X1 xDrive 28i.

While the larger Q5 opens just clear of the Q3 and X1 line-ups at $62,200, the Range Rover Evoque is also officially classified as a mid-size SUV but opens from under $50,000 for the entry-level Evoque eD4 Pure five-door.

However, with an array of models topping out with the $76,895 Si4 Prestige three-door, most Evoques sell for around $65,000. There’s also Land Rover’s almost-forgotten Freelander, priced from $44,990.

Although the Q5 remains Australia’s top-selling luxury SUV ahead of BMW’s larger-still X5, so far this year this year the Evoque has proved twice as popular as the X1, sales of which are 35 per cent down, and the Q3 is less than a 100 sales behind.

ON THE ROAD

Instead of radical changes to what is essentially a higher-riding, body-cladded version of the 3 Series Touring for quite a bit less money, BMW is offering slightly sportier and more upmarket exterior styling and, if you pay extra for sat-nav, a much classier piano-black centre stack treatment.

Without the latter, the lidded dash-top console looks like a bit of an after-thought and the only other change inside is a few extra chrome highlights, meaning there are still some hard cabin plastics and a number of dashboard panels still feel flimsier than in the Q3 and Evoque – let alone the 3 Series. And where is the handy, now-common one-touch indicator function, BMW?

That said, the X1 cockpit is a nice place to reside, offering far more luxury than the original X3, plus a typically sporty BMW-style visage, highly adjustable driving position and an overwhelming sense of solidity (the doors thud home even more impressively than a Golf).

In fact, while three big adults will be cosy in the class-leadingly flexible rear seat, the X1 is almost as large inside as the first X3 – just as the second-generation X3 has grown to become around the same size as the first X5.

On the road, the base sDrive 18d pleases with its super-quiet cabin, at least until a surprising amount of wind noise emanates from the A-pillars at around 110km/h and the diesel engine makes its presence heard above 4000rpm – more so than the Q3’s.

But that’s where the negatives end, because even the entry-level X1 offers vault-like body rigidity, a ride/handling package that combines sports sedan dynamics with the type of ride quality that early runflat tyre-equipped BMWs could only dream of.

The X1’s electromechanical steering is sharp, direct and communicative, and although it remains free of the torque steer that afflicts its front-drive British and German rivals when driven hard, push hard and you will find a whiff of steering rack rattle.

Despite its position as the cheapest engine variant, the 2.0-litre turbo-diesel delivers satisfyingly strong performance at all revs and matches well with the brilliant new ZF eight-speed auto. Yes, you have to pay extra for gearshift paddles, but this diesel/auto combo really does its best work when left to its own devices.

Icing on the case is fuel consumption. We recorded just 6.0L/100km – despite some enthusiastic city and undulating country roads during a day’s driving around the Gold Coast hinterland.

Moving up to the xDrive 20d delivers even more diesel punch, but a brief gravel road squirt left us wondering why you’d spend the extra $10,000 for all-wheel drive, which negates much of the extra performance of the high-output diesel engine.

The stability control light flashed almost constantly on the tight, corrugated loose surface, offering no more grip than in the rear-drive 18d, although the 20d does make more power everywhere, spins freely to a sky-high 5000rpm and used only marginally more fuel at 6.9L/100km.

Of course, the downside is fuel economy of 11.5L/100km during our drive and, at more than $60K on the road, a similar price to the cheapest X3.

Yes, only train-spotters will notice the changes to the MY13 BMW X1 inside or out, but upgraded engines and that silky-smooth ZF automatic transmisison make all models quicker and more efficient than both their predecessors, even if the 28i isn’t as frugal as its direct Audi rival.

Moreover, for enthusiastic drivers, the rear-drive X1 base models continue to hold a decided dynamic advantage over their most direct front-drive rivals, including the Q5 and even the well-sorted Evoque.

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