VH_Supra26
10-01-2008, 12:22 AM
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The next couple of years will be very busy for BMW as it launches a handful of new models including new versions of current top sellers and some models we’ve never seen before. One of these brand new models will be a compact SUV called the X1, and today pictures of the vehicle have been revealed ahead of its expected launch tomorrow.
While we have already seen prototypes for the X1 testing at the Nurburgring, BMW has finally confirmed the model last week with the release of an official trailer for a concept version of the car.
In true BMW tradition, the Concept X1 is expected to be almost identical to the final production version due towards the end of next year.
The X1 looks like a shrunk-down version of the X5 SUV with some elements from the sportier X6 thrown in, and a healthy share of typical BMW styling to fill in the rest. Sharing its running gear with the 1-series, the X1’s footprint is expected to be only slightly bigger than the compact car on which it is based, its overall dimensions being 4457mm in length, 1789mm in width and 1535mm in height. Slightly greater ride height and 18-inch wheels complete the conversion to compact SUV.
Like the X5 before it, the X1 will be focused on on-road performance over off-road capability. At launch it will be available with two engines: a 170hp (126kW) 2.0L petrol engine and a 177hp (132kW) 2.0L diesel. Many more options are expected to follow as the model matures, however, since the full force of BMW's 1-series and 3-series platforms, plus its entire four and six-cylinder engine lineup can be brought to bear on the vehicle. Transmission options are expected to include a six-speed manual and a new eight-speed automatic unit as well, reports CAR. Further down the road - at least two years from its debut - is a hybrid version, though the company's range of thrist-quenching EfficientDynamics technologies should be employed before then.
Despite the close comparison in size to the 1-series compact, the Concept X1 is also equally close in size to bigger brother X3, meaning the X1, while smaller, won't likely be a significant step down in size. Where that leaves the X1 in the overall lineup is therefore less clear than it might otherwise be, but small differences in exterior dimensions may be only part of the story, as it's interior dimensions, cargo space, and overall 'feel' that will determine how consumers end up categorizing the X1.
In another move mimicking its larger X5/X6 sibling pair, BMW is expected to introduce an X2 variant that shaves the X1 down to a rakish but tall three-door hatch form factor. BMW reportedly calls this a 'Sports Activity Runabout', and though the marketing team is undoubtedly happy with that description, the precise meaning of the phrase is not clear.
All Content Copyright 2006-2008 Motor Authority
http://www.motorauthority.com/2008-bmw-concept-x1.html
http://www.motorauthority.com/content/thumbs/2/0/2008_bmx_concept_x1_002-0930-950x673.jpg
http://www.motorauthority.com/content/thumbs/2/0/2008_bmx_concept_x1_003-0930-950x673.jpg
The next couple of years will be very busy for BMW as it launches a handful of new models including new versions of current top sellers and some models we’ve never seen before. One of these brand new models will be a compact SUV called the X1, and today pictures of the vehicle have been revealed ahead of its expected launch tomorrow.
While we have already seen prototypes for the X1 testing at the Nurburgring, BMW has finally confirmed the model last week with the release of an official trailer for a concept version of the car.
In true BMW tradition, the Concept X1 is expected to be almost identical to the final production version due towards the end of next year.
The X1 looks like a shrunk-down version of the X5 SUV with some elements from the sportier X6 thrown in, and a healthy share of typical BMW styling to fill in the rest. Sharing its running gear with the 1-series, the X1’s footprint is expected to be only slightly bigger than the compact car on which it is based, its overall dimensions being 4457mm in length, 1789mm in width and 1535mm in height. Slightly greater ride height and 18-inch wheels complete the conversion to compact SUV.
Like the X5 before it, the X1 will be focused on on-road performance over off-road capability. At launch it will be available with two engines: a 170hp (126kW) 2.0L petrol engine and a 177hp (132kW) 2.0L diesel. Many more options are expected to follow as the model matures, however, since the full force of BMW's 1-series and 3-series platforms, plus its entire four and six-cylinder engine lineup can be brought to bear on the vehicle. Transmission options are expected to include a six-speed manual and a new eight-speed automatic unit as well, reports CAR. Further down the road - at least two years from its debut - is a hybrid version, though the company's range of thrist-quenching EfficientDynamics technologies should be employed before then.
Despite the close comparison in size to the 1-series compact, the Concept X1 is also equally close in size to bigger brother X3, meaning the X1, while smaller, won't likely be a significant step down in size. Where that leaves the X1 in the overall lineup is therefore less clear than it might otherwise be, but small differences in exterior dimensions may be only part of the story, as it's interior dimensions, cargo space, and overall 'feel' that will determine how consumers end up categorizing the X1.
In another move mimicking its larger X5/X6 sibling pair, BMW is expected to introduce an X2 variant that shaves the X1 down to a rakish but tall three-door hatch form factor. BMW reportedly calls this a 'Sports Activity Runabout', and though the marketing team is undoubtedly happy with that description, the precise meaning of the phrase is not clear.
All Content Copyright 2006-2008 Motor Authority
http://www.motorauthority.com/2008-bmw-concept-x1.html