I’m very fond of the outgoing X1, the reason being that it remains an ‘old’ BMW. The reason I say’old’ is that I don’t think any of the ‘new’ BMWs feel that nice personally, they just aren’t the driver’s vehicles that they used to be anymore these days. However, I love the way that the X1 drives as it still makes use of the rear-wheel-drive 1 Series architecture. As far as this nex X1 is concerned, it appears to be much improved in many important areas, but I have concerns that it will have problems from the same sort of dulling which all the other BMWs have had.
Despite this, the new X1 will most likely attract a larger amount of luxury crossover shoppers. It replaces the cool, tall wago shape that the old model has, with a more traditional CUV shape. Imagine a small X5. The vehicle comes with a lot more technology outside and inside and as well as being more spacious, the X1 is also more efficient than it was previously.
The only engine to be available in the US is BMW’s 2.0-liter, turbocharged, inline-four-cylinder with 228 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. All-wheel frive and eight-speed automatic transmission come as standard.
I’m not convinced that this X1 will be quite as fun to drive as the outgoing model, however sales will surely be boosted due to the improvements made to the vehicle. As small, luxury CUVs are more popular than ever before, this is really important. Check out the gallery above to view the vehicle for yourself, live from Frankfurt.
