BMW X6KEY POINTS:
What's new? According to BMW, the idea of blending a high-riding crossover with coupe-like styling. Think of the new X6 as an X5 - on which it is based - with more girth, much less interior space and seriously sharp dynamics and you're just about there.
The styling,
including the front section, is mostly unique to the X6.
The awesome 210kW/580Nm twin-turbo 3.0-litre turbo diesel engine offered at launch is shared with the X5, as well as other BMW models, but the 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol (end of year) is all-new and unique to the X6.
The 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol from the 3-series is imminent.
The X6 is the first BMW to get Dynamic Performance Control, a function of the four-wheel-drive - sorry, xDrive - system that shifts power side-to-side in a sort of self-steering action.
It also works on over-run and, like the rest of xDrive, operates proactively (you don't need wheelspin before it kicks in). It's clever.
Oh, and the X6 also introduces the segment's most confusing model-naming system.
The $139,000 petrol six is the BMW xDrive35i, while the same-price diesel is the xDrive35d. The big V8 - price yet to be announced, but expect it to be about $170k - will be the xDrive50i.
The company line "The extravagant body design combines the sporting elegance of a BMW coupe with the striking DNA and driving dynamics of BMW xDrive.
"The BMW X6 is a completely new type of vehicle, with unique design and driving dynamics never seen before."
What we say Not sure about that coupe-off-roader thing: haven't SsangYong (the Actyon) and Mazda (CX-7) been there already? But you certainly can't ignore the X6 on the road - it's shorter and lower than an X5, but wider.
Such a profligate statement doesn't befit this sporting brand and the concept looks kind of stupid, even if it does drive well. Then again, we all said that about the Porsche Cayenne, and who's laughing now?
On the road Prepare to be amazed. The X6 does things through corners that no two-tonne-plus vehicle should be capable of. You simply can't question the engineering excellence and dynamic ability of this vehicle - at least until Dynamic Performance Control makes it into the still-excellent X5.
But feel free to question the poor visibility (you can't see a thing out the back, yet a reversing camera is still a $1200 option), limited rear headroom (it's a four-seater-only) and compromised boot, which has a ridiculously high lip and not a lot of space (570 litres) for such a massive vehicle.
So what's stopping you? Taste, 20-20 vision, that kind of thing. The image-conscious early adopters will love it, though. You can go and buy an X5 if you don't like it.
