Sports cars have long been more than just flat and uncomfortable. With the new M models from X3 and X4, BMW is launching two veritable high-legged dynamics.
Sports cars are flat, narrow and can hardly be climbed after the first herniated disc at the latest? No wonder: While sleek coupés and roadsters are finding it increasingly difficult to get into the hearts and shopping lists of buyers, a new generation of dynamics is maturing - the high-performance SUV. They take into account the desire of many drivers to sit higher and have more space, and at the same time satisfy the desire to perform. The fact that they have too high a center of gravity and a few kilograms too much for a veritable sports car makes up for it with plenty of horsepower and fabulous suspension tuning. The BMW is demonstrating impressively with the new M models of its mid-size SUV X3 and X4, which will be available from dealers from September at prices of around EUR 85.000.
X3 and X4, one of the classic 4,70-meter middle-graders, the other the sleek SUV coupé, appear for the first time as a genuine M-model. In the predecessor, the M4i was the highest of feelings, exclusively in the X40 series; a so-called M-Performance model, which was a tame contemporary compared to the new cars with just 265 kW / 340 PS. Now those responsible are putting a shovel that has it all: Although it stays under the hood with an inline six-cylinder - the V8 is reserved for the big brothers X5 and X6 - it was recently under the aegis of Markus Flasch standing M GmbH completely newly developed. And Flasch knows what is important, after all, with the 8 Series he was responsible for what was probably the most emotional car in the BMW range.
The high-performance engine, which we will meet again in the upcoming new editions of M3 and M4, combines the finest engineering skills with the latest technology. The cylinder head core, for example, comes from the 3D printer, which not only enables a lighter design, but also significantly better temperature management: The printer can produce filigree cooling channels that would not be possible in the classic casting process. The developers have put a lot of brain power into the oil supply, which is always able to cope with tough racing conditions. It remains to be seen whether the two-ton SUV, regardless of its talents, is really the right vehicle for hot laps on the ring.
Iron-coated cylinder liners, flow-optimized intake air routing: in the end, the typical M insignia such as the huge air intakes, the striking mirrors or the cheeky spoilers count in the parking lot, and at the regulars' table it is less the internal engine refinements that are more important than the bare numbers: 480 HP and 600 Newton meters are in the data sheet, enough to make Audi SQ5 and Porsche Macan drivers pale with envy. And to make the Mercedes-AMG-GLC-63 and Alfa-Romeo-Stelvio-Quadrifoglio discourages laugh, BMW is also just a competition version that with 510 hp with the same as the aforementioned. The plus is only a tenth of the standard acceleration, BMW specifies 4,2 instead of 4,1 seconds, and the five counters more on the Vmax 285 are due to the newly programmed electronic bolt and not the additional power. The 5 in horsepower is certainly good for your own ego, even if you have to put around 10.000 euros more on the table.
Interesting: The torque here is 600 Newton meters, but is a bit longer in the competition. In general, the BMW six-in-line makes its power available over an enormously wide range. First of all, he needs 2.600 tours to really get going; to achieve this is a breeze for the two turbochargers. For this, the torque remains constant up to 5.600, in the competition even up to almost 6.000 revolutions. The wide band makes full use of the revving engine, after all, if you want to get the maximum power, you have to chase the needle of the rev counter to 6.250 rpm and only beyond the 7.000 mark does the limiter force the eight-speed automatic to shift. If you switch to manual mode, you have to use the lever or the steering wheel paddle yourself, otherwise the engine will not stop. This is not only extremely sporty, it is simply consistent.
It is just as logical that the high-performance SUV always sends its power to the road via all four wheels. The four-wheel drive is designed to be rear-heavy and, when accelerating out of the curve, allows more or less large dangling with the rump depending on the ESP setting. However, BMW has decided against an M5 drift mode that frees the front axle from work. "Rear-wheel drive with a lot of reserve," M-Chef Flach calls the vote with pride. And indeed: Very few drivers should feel patronized by the technology in Sport mode, but they drive in everyday life with the certainty of the best traction, which lets both X models sweep through the curve with the ease of a flat coupe. Numerous struts also ensure that the body is stiff and safe on the road. And because you tend to forget what mass you have under the rear when cornering, BMW also leaves nothing to chance when it comes to the brakes and installs the stoppers from the twelve-cylinder M20Li, which react extremely snappily, behind the standard 760-inch wheels. Just as it should be for a real sports car.
