BMW X3 REVIEW

BMW X3 REVIEW - BMW X3 2012 is latest cars and first drive. The BMW designers and engineers have clearly taken some of the criticism to heart.BMW might claim to have invented the Sports Activity segment, but their competitors have caught up with some pretty decent cars – like the Audi Q5, Volvo XC60, and Land Rover Freelander. Even Koreans Hyundai and Kia, offering smaller, cheaper 4x2 options such as the iX35 and Sportage, are stealing market share.

BMW managed to sell 615 000 of these ugly ducklings. Shows you how much we know. But I can understand why it sold so well. During 2007 I drove more than 20 000km in a 3.0si. The car was built like solid brick outhouse (it even looked like one) and it went like a rocket. So what if it was thirsty, expensive and the ride as hard as Margaret Thatcher? It was a sports car on stilts and I loved driving it.

THERE’S NO WAY one can give a driving impression of the new BMW X3 by not referring to the much maligned car it replaces. Even though motoring writers panned version one for its looks, hard and uncomfortable ride, premium price and cramped interior, a lot of people all over the world went out and bought one.

New BMW 6-Series convertible

New BMW 6-Series convertible - Launched in convertible format initially, the new 6-Series is certainly less controversial in the styling stakes: less of a bustled rump and a smoother, sharper profile. Certainly in the pictures I saw before coming out, and on the stand at the Paris show, I was keen.

But I've mellowed towards it after driving it today. In real life, it's more of the same: there's nothing here that actively offends, but you can't help thinking that the car is lacking a certain something. On the road it looks nice enough, but nothing very striking. There's just not that much to get excited about.

Still, a 407bhp, 442lb ft 650i V8 should sort that, right? Well, again, not quite. The 650 weighs over two tonnes, so despite having plenty of get-up-n-go from the motor, the Six never really feels quite as fast as the figures suggest - five seconds to 60mph is respectable, but the car feels like a cruiser from the off.

It's also a tad firm on anything other than smooth roads - very German - and the active steering is about as tactile as remote surgery. I've got an eight-hour odyssey of driving tomorrow, so there's more to come, but first impressions are that there are no surprises here.