2015 BMW X6 Review

381 HP and 740 Nm (546 lb-ft) of torque are no joke but the engineers made sure you don’t get suffocated by that amount of twist. The power delivery is extremely linear and we got the feeling that this diesel was tuned to feel somewhat like a petrol. It certainly sounds like one because M Performance Cars like the M50d get the BMW Active Sound Design system that pipes exhaust notes in the cabin.

That means that when you get into Sport mode, you get amplified engine sound inside that lets you know exactly how revved the engine is without having to look at the instrument cluster. In its absence, the car would be so well soundproofed, that you simply couldn’t tell how high your engine was revved unless you checked the counter. Say what you want, but it’s a very useful trick if you ask me.

That’s a problem you don’t get on the xDrive50i. Powered by a twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 that makes 450 HP and 650 Nm (479 lb-ft) of torque, you’ll get a nice growl out of it every time you mash the pedal. Overtaking and going beyond 200 km/h (124 mph) will be an easy feat and even reaching the top speed that’s electronically limited to 155 mph (250 km/h) will not have the car breaking a sweat.

The other three choices available at the moment, the xDrive35i, xDrive30d and xDrive40d will also be fast enough to get you out of any sticky situation. The pick of the range as a fuel efficiency/power/price ratio would go is the xDrive40d that comes with a 3-liter biturbo diesel making 313 HP and 630 Nm (465 lb-ft) of torque. Unfortunately, the US won’t get it for now, as it is limited to petrol models only. The xDrive30d might show up in the future but don’t get your hopes up.

As standard, you get the Comfort adaptive suspension package that includes Dynamic Damper Control and air suspension with automatic self-leveling for the rear axle. That’s basically the most comfortable choice and will translate into a lot of body roll if you want to push your car to the limit.

However, there are other options out there too. The Adaptive M Suspension that you get as part of the M Sport package takes things to a new level, stiffening up the dampers when going into sport or sport plus mode. It’s not the best choice if you want to go racing, though.

At the top of the ‘suspension food chain’ sits the Dynamic Adaptive Suspension package that was fitted to our tester. What it does is bring active roll stabilization into the mix that is achieved thanks to active stabilizing bars. Furthermore, a new differential is installed in the back that brings torque vectoring at play. However, this is a system that uses the brakes to change the torque distribution, unlike other systems.

What is it like to drive? At first, you get really confused. The thing is, the car was definitely tuned to be more enjoyable with some level of electronic safety systems active. We turned them all off and the level of understeer we got was simply unbearable.

Enter the Sport+ mode and you get a completely different animal. Normally, you’d approach a corner braking going in, maintaining the throttle level through the turn and then accelerating on your way out. That didn’t bring the expected results. The car understeered and left us rather disappointed and craving for the old xDrive that was a lot more fun.

We also tried a different approach, one closer to the one you’d apply to a supercar. Therefore, we tried approaching turns braking late and then jumping on the power immediately and guess what? It was a completely different feeling.

The electronics kept everything going exactly as we wished them to and they sorted out perfectly where to send the power. We no longer felt massive body roll and the car simply threw itself around the turns showing us what efficient racing truly means, giving us hope about the upcoming M version. We’re hoping the X6 M will reach our headquarters for testing purposes in a couple of months.

That being said, it’s sad that most of these cars will never get the options they need to perform at their best on the limit and beyond it. Most of them will be driven around town for daily chores and while they’ll do that with ease (also being comfortable) they will also be ignoring all the hard work that was put into creating that torque vectoring differential and that’s a damn shame.

The iDrive system is truly a Cinderella story. From one of the worst infotainment systems it has risen to being amongst the top three in the world at the moment, if not all the way up to the number one spot.

BMW’s efforts in bringing smartphone connectivity inside have paid off and you can get the ConnectedDrive system and a plethora of apps integrated in the car’s infotainment features. Music streaming is easily done and extended Bluetooth connectivity allows you to play anything you want from your phone through the speakers.

Cars are now also fitted with a built-in SIM card that grants you Internet access without using your phone anymore. The 10.25” screen is generous and the navigation maps will be updated over the air in the future. They will also show the buildings around you in 3D, if you go for the top spec version.

An honorable mention has to go towards the Bang & Olufsen sound system we had for our listening pleasure. It costs €4,000 ($4,500), which is cheaper than what other companies ask for but we’re still split on whether to recommend it or not.

The thing is, right before we tested the X6 with the B&O system we had the chance to experience it inside an X5. The problem is there was a huge difference between the two setups. While on the F15 X5 it was a listening experience worthy of the highest praise, the SAC disappointed being no better than a Harman Kardon setup. Something was definitely off.

Furthermore, each system is claimed to be adapted specifically for the car it is installed in but we didn’t feel that care to details inside the X6. Truth be told, a lot of materials started resonating with the speakers on certain frequencies and we were rather disappointed.

The same couldn’t be said about the X5 setup. It was beautifully put together and really showed us why audiophiles choose to pay €3,000 more to get it inside their cars. We can only think that something was wrong inside the X6 and that’s why the difference was so big between the two cars.

As far as we’re discussing tech bits on the X6 we should also mention the fact that the parking assistant is worth every penny. While on his SUV brother the visibility allows you to park the car with no problems at all, the SAC could use the Parking Assistant if you have $500 to spare.

What it does is use two small radars installed in the front bumper’s sides to look for parking spaces. When one is found a message is displayed on the iDrive screen telling you that if you want to park you should stop the car.

Then, you follow the instructions on the screen and the car will park by itself. It’s really weird at first to watch how the steering wheel moves on its own and how the gears are changed while you’re just sitting there, pressing a button. However, it gets the job done and in a timely manner too and we couldn’t get it to malfunction, but not for lack of trying. Props to BMW!

Being such a big car, you’d think that safety is not a problem and you’d be right. The X6 can be fitted with all kinds of active safety systems and they will probably save a lot of lives.

As standard, you get Active Head Restraints for the front seats, head protection airbags all around, adaptive brake lights, daytime running lights that look amazing, BMW Assist eCall (that calls the emergency services on its own in case of an accident) and many more features. The X6 hasn’t been tested yet by any safety watchdog in Europe or the US but its brother, the X5 was assessed by the IIHS and received a good rating for both the moderate overlap front crash test and the side test.

Optional features get you collision warning with braking function, pedestrian detection, lane departure warning (that detects when you exit your lane without signaling and starts vibrating your steering wheel to get your attention) and even night vision, to name just a few. Bottom line, you’ll be safe inside the new X6.
The only problem the new model has is the same as on the first generation: it’s not understood by the masses, as it was and will be a niche product. But that’s the magic of it, it’s a car with a special design that says “I can afford to buy this thing and not care about practicality”.

That’s because the X5 is definitely the SUV you should choose out of BMW’s line-up at the moment, if you listen to reason. It has more room, the same optionals and interior and costs less. It’s not as agile on the road but who needs that in more than 10 percent of their time, anyway?

In fact, it is so attractive that other brands are starting to roll out their own Sport Activity Coupe models. Up until now, the X6 was unchallenged in this niche. Not one other car out there was available with the same body style. This is all about to change now that we have the Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe out looking to bite a sizable chunk of the Bimmer’s market, but we’re rather reluctant towards the Merc to be honest.

That’s because it simply doesn’t look up to the task. While the exterior and interior design might be a subjective matter, on the engine front the win would also go to the X6, at least for now. However, we don’t have the official prices for the GLE available so we can’t tell if the Stuttgart-based company will want to take on the Municher using the price advantage but we have a hunch that will be the case.

Speaking of which, the X6 starts at $59,600 in the US for the sDrive35i which is the only rear-wheel drive model at the moment. In Europe, the cheapest one is the xDrive30d version starting at €65,650. Of course, those are just starting price tags that can get pretty high in no time with a couple of optionals.
For example, the M50d version starts at €87,300 but our tester reached as high as €122,256 with 19% VAT included. That’s extremely steep considering that the new X6 M version will start at just over €100,000. However, we did have almost everything you could get on it so that has to count for something.

The X6 remains a misunderstood car that is better than anyone expects at first. The only downsides come from its special design that brought it to life in the first place but if there was ever a car that was perfectly described by the ‘love it or hate it’ saying, this is it. We really can’t fault it for being what it is but for those of you looking for practicality above anything else, the X5 will make more sense. If you want to stand out in the crowd, the X6 will definitely be a head turner, be it for praise or criticism.