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BMW’s range-topping X6 xDrive50i Sports Activity Coupe is now available in New Zealand and with it, comes BMW’s new 4.4-litre Twin Turbo, all-aluminium V8 petrol engine.
The engine is the world’s first eight-cylinder gasoline engine with the turbo-charger and catalytic converters housed in the V-section between the two rows of cylinders. This clever arrangement reduces pressure losses on the intake and exhaust side, while the use of two turbochargers for the first time on an eight-cylinder power unit boosts both engine output and torque. Each of the two turbochargers supplies compressed air to four cylinders at a time, reducing any hint of turbo lag.
The engine achieves a maximum output 300 kW/407 hp from 5,500 – 6,400 rpm and maximum torque of 600 Nm/442 lb-ft comes from 1,750 – 4,500 rpm and will power the X6 xDrive 50i to 100 kilometres per hour in only 5.4 seconds with an electronically-capped top speed of 250 kilometres per hour.
In a word, it’s a beast but it has been tamed, so much so, that if you’re not too heavy on the pedal, it will get you from A to B at 13.8 litres per 100 kilometres.
Specs and data are all very well but it’s the grunty rumble of the V8 that speaks volumes. At idle, though, there is barely a purr but put your foot down and there is no mucking around. The xDrive50i unleashes a low, satisfying roar as centrifugal gravity tries to mould you to the soft leather upholstery. It’s the perfect balance between fun while still maintaining a healthy relationship with your neighbours.
A six-speed automatic transmission with optimised gearshift dynamics is standard on all engine variants providing extremely quick changes. An electronic gear selector lever and gearshift paddles on the steering wheel are featured as standard.
The X6, which BMW describes as the world’s first Sports Activity Coupé, launched in New Zealand in June 2008 with a six-cylinder BMW X6 xDrive35i and a twin turbo three-litre diesel BMW X6 35d. The xDrive50i replaces the current xDrive35i but the diesel version will remain – in fact, it gets a specification upgrade to include a rear-view camera as a standard feature.
While the X6 might have come from the X5’s family mover heritage, it’s gone off in an entirely new direction, combining some of the aesthetics of a large BMW Coupé with the powerful presence of a BMW X model.
And while it retains some of the family car aspects of the X5, if you’ve got three kids, you might have to think about trading one of them in, as a centre console in the back seat makes it purely a two-seater. It could be worth thinking about, though, for what the X6 lacks in people-moving ability, it sure knows how to move.
Underneath all of that pretty sheet metal is a complex array of optional driver assistance systems. Dynamic Performance Control comes as standard with BMW’s intelligent xDrive all-wheel-drive technology with electronic control for variable distribution of drive power between the front and rear axles consistently adjusted to driving conditions at all times and in all situations.
However, featured for the first time as standard in the BMW X6, Dynamic Performance Control ensures variable distribution of drive forces, with fully variable management, so that the power of the engine is no longer split “just” between the front and rear axle but also between the left and right rear wheel, feeding additional power to the most appropriate point where it can be conveyed best to the road.
In the case of high-speed cornering where a vehicle would be pushing to the outside of a bend either at the rear or on its front wheels, both BMW xDrive and Dynamic Performance Control are able to counteract any form of driving instability. As soon as the vehicle threatens to oversteer, xDrive reduces the transmission of power to the rear wheels pushing to the outside. And then Dynamic Performance Control withdraws drive forces from the outer rear wheel in a bend subject to particular centrifugal loads, diverting these forces to the inner rear wheel.
Dynamic Performance Control also counteracts any tendency to understeer. xDrive reduces the transmission of power to the front wheels “pushing” to the outside and Dynamic Performance Control shifts drive power to the outer rear wheel.
Whatever is doing all of that calculating is doing a good job of it.
A car this size shouldn’t be so agile. It just doesn’t seem right.
But man, is it fun.
The BMW X6 xDrive50i with standard sports package is priced at $175,000. The BMW X6 xDrive35d is priced at $139,000. Both models now include Head-Up Display, Cruise control and rear-view camera in their standard specification.
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