BMW have launched the latest generation F16 X6 in India. It’s an all-new car, now larger and more powerful, but is still aimed at a buyer who wants a lot of sport activity in a coupé. What’s it like to live with? We dig a little deeper.
Story: Jim Gorde
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
Burgers? Or pizza? If you’re a foodie and have a circle of friends equally enthusiastic about what are the options to engorge on, that’s a common dilemma. Not long ago, a leading burger chain came up with the ‘pizza burger’. A burger the size of a large pizza, cut into triangular slices like one too. It had over 2,500 calories and more than the daily recommended intake of several essential nutrients. True. It solved the problem. You get to hold your burger like a pizza and enjoy the gorge session. The cheese holds it all together, so it doesn’t matter that it isn’t exactly a whole portion of either. It works, though.
BMW introduced the X6 ‘Sports Activity Coupé’ back in 2008 as a ’09 model. It was simply one of those love-it-or-hate-it models and while some questioned its capability and practicality, others admired its size, boldness and road presence; the latter of which it possessed in volumes. It even led to competition jumping to the drawing board. Overseas, the Acura ZDX and, only recently, the Mercedes GLE Coupé have been the only other similar offerings. Furthermore, it spawned a smaller sibling in the X4. So, this, the second-generation car, codenamed the F16 (with no relation to the fighter jet), takes the game forward for this unique offering from the Bavarian giant.
What’s new? Well, look at that face. All that aggression which began with the F30 3 Series and the gorgeous F82 M4 carried over to the X5, making it look more in sync with the times. Like its more conventional SUV sibling, the new X6 gains the wide LED-loaded headlamps, a wider and meaner front grille, and even grows a bit all round, gaining a few precious millimetres that liberate more room inside. Whatever the silhouette, sloping roof and high rear end, you simply can’t deny that it certainly makes its presence felt.
On the outside, the X6 is huge. It’s 30 millimetres longer than the first-gen E71 model, and a smidgen wider and taller, too. The big wheels and high ground clearance add to the dominating stance it bears. Adding to that are the mixed 275/40 and 315/35 20-inch rubber, front and rear respectively. The styling details, especially the ‘M’ badging, make it quite exciting to look at. It’s also high off the ground, at 212 mm, and offers decent approach and departure angles of 25° and 22.5° respectively. The breakover angle is 20°, but that’s because of the long 2,933-mm wheelbase. Not to worry, though, because we headed into some untamed hills to see just how much of the rough it could really handle.
While we were heading to our chosen location, one thing was clear: the X6’s performance is not to be taken lightly. Not only is it high off the ground, it also packs an updated powertrain. The signature 3.0-litre straight-six TwinPower Turbo diesel engine now puts out 313 PS and 630 Nm. That’s over 200 Nm per litre of displacement! The transmission is an updated ZF 8HP eight-speed automatic unit, optimised for efficiency and linear power delivery, paired to the xDrive intelligent all-wheel-drive system. Together, they work wonders for this 2.2-tonne Bavarian behemoth.
