2007 BMW X3 Facelift Test Drive Review

The new face lifted BMW X3 is essentially a jacked up 3-Series station wagon with BMW’s xDrive all-wheel-drive system. Bear in mind, not even the latest 3-Series even – just like how BMW dipped into the E39 parts bin when designing most of the previous generation X5, the BMW X3 takes most of its stuff from the E46 BMW 330xi.

The recent facelift also seems to have come too late, while in reality it is actually on time, as the X3 was only launched in late 2003. While BMW’s entire range has been updated, the X3 feels old inside. Yes, it has BMW’s new chrome-trimmed shifter design with a nice grip. Yes, the same very nicely done aluminium bits are there. But the meter panel is of the old design with old school-looking needles – thick with some 3D effects which seem not to be in tune with the rest of the interior. The little LCD in the middle of the two gauges is… well, not there. Instead, there is a little LED panel showing what gear position you are in, and that’s about it. The steering column stalks are not of the new soft touch type, they’re of an older design. There is no little electronic fob you insert into a slot and a push start button to press – the ignition on the X3 is the old school twist-key-in-hole-on-steering-column design.

The 218 horsepower 2.5 liter N54 straight-six engine is very rev happy and goes up to it’s redline without much effort, while retaining plenty of low end torque sufficient for a SUV. What BMW does with their normally aspirated engines is pure magic. They’re truly experts at this. Of course, it does feel a little weighed down in this car compared to the 325i, because of the additional weight of xDrive. Speaking of xDrive, the all-wheel-drive system found in this compact ute deserves some mention. It works somewhat differently from normal all-wheel-drive systems which react to changes in traction. xDrive actually tries to predict the required power that needs to go to either the front or rear axle using data from Dynamic Stability Control sensors, thus in effect reacting much faster than other systems. Interior space is also sufficient, and what they say about the X3 having more interior room than the old X5 is true. There’s really no complaints here – large boot, sufficient rear passenger legroom, however I must once again complain about the lack of a rear blower.

The little LCD in the middle of the two gauges is… well, not there. Instead, there is a little LED panel showing what gear position you are in, and that’s about it. The steering column stalks are not of the new soft touch type, they’re of an older design. There is no little electronic fob you insert into a slot and a push start button to press – the ignition on the X3 is the old school twist-key-in-hole-on-steering-column design. If you’re accustomed to how modern BMWs feel like, this feels old. It’s not that these bits and pieces of the interior don’t function well - they do! Just that you’ll expect something, well… newer. The X3 seems to be stuck somewhere in between the past and the present in terms of BMW interior design language.

Despite its size, parking the BMW X3 was surprisingly easy as it has some nifty features to make it easier for you to park. The left wing mirror automatically tilts downwards for you to watch where the rear left corner of the vehicle is heading, ensuring you get to park as close to the side curb as possible when doing parallel parking. There are also sensors for both front and rear, and each sensor provides a different beep tone so you know whether the X3 is too close to something else at the front or the rear. Seeing what an improvement BMW made with the new E70 X5 over the old X5, it would be better if you take a chance and wait for the new full model change BMW X3 to be released if you want to get a BMW compact luxury SUV. It’s not that the X3 is a bad car, it’s good, but you can’t help but feel it is the definition of what good was 3 years ago, even though the mechanicals have been updated to the latest editions, like the straight-six engine for instance.

Buying anything luxury is always an emotional decision, as something cheaper in the 150K range would more than suffice. Constantly feeling you paid top dollar for something that feels like it belongs to a previous generation might bother you. But if it doesn’t, this updated first generation X3 is not a bad choice. Then again, if you’re really that appreciative of engineering, you’re likely be in the market for something more of a driver’s car, so you’ll most likely buy a BMW sedan anyway instead of an SUV. Anyway, I’m still very curious to find out how an X3 3.0sd feels like. This top of the line variant has BMW’s award winning 3.0 liter twin turbodiesel engine. However, no chance of it making it’s way to local shores because of our diesel which only recently got upgraded to Euro II, while the engine needs at least Euro IV. Too bad for us.

BMW 130i M Sport Test Drive Review

I don’t care what a certain very prominent member of the motoring journalist fraternity thinks – the Volkswagen R32 is not available in Malaysia. You’re looking at the hottest hatch in the Malaysian car market – the BMW 130i M Sport.

Even judging it by horsepower alone, it makes the most – 265 horsepower at 6,600rpm and 315Nm of torque at 2,750rpm. That’s a good 65 more than the only other proper hot hatch sold here – the Volkswagen Golf GTI.

It’s also much more pricier at RM329,800 – an amount that could snag you an entry-level BMW 5-series if you top it up a little more, or perhaps the 325i M Sport. But the 3-series would be a locally assembled unit – this baby comes in fully imported.

Read my full test drive report after the jump.

The M Sport suffix on the model name indicates that the car comes with lots of extra vitamin M goodness. We’re talking about the M kit which makes the car look a lot better than what the standard 1-Series looks like. Maybe it’s because the huge gaping central air intake on the M sport front bumper takes away focus from the droopy headlamps. Or maybe it’s because we all love huge gaping central air intakes and what they usually stand for.

On the rear you have a nice-looking two tone rear bumper that features a diffuser painted with a dark grey, and the rest body colour. And of course, those gorgeous M Light Alloy Double Spoke 208M 18 inch wheels, wrapped with run-flat tyres. The tyres are 205/45/R18 sized at the front, but the rear tyres are wider at 225/40/R18.

On the interior, there is the chunky overly thick M leather steering which has a relatively small diameter and feels great to hold in your hand, and the M side steps.

Of course, what you really want is the M Sports suspension. It’s actually very liveable with on a daily basis in the BMW 3-Series, but the combination of a short wheelbase as well as run flat tyres make slow speed rides around the town in this hot hatch a jittery and harsh experience. The ride does smoothen out on highways even at fast speeds, but that’s probably because the highways are smoother in the first place. But still, as the driver the harsh ride never really gets to you. You just smile, maybe chuckle a little, and say to yourself, “The things I put up with for the thrill of driving.”

Yup, that’s exactly what you get with the BMW 130i. It really takes a very special person to want to own this car. You gotta have plenty of dough for one, and perhaps a 5-series as the daily driver because the rear legroom of this car is so useless it should be called a 2+2 instead. And you’ve got to love a fantastic drive that much to actually spend that kind of money on a small hatch like this.

Because this is the most fun I’ve had in a BMW ever. I haven’t driven any M cars so at the moment this sits at the top of my list. The chassis is just so rigid - I wonder how the 2-door version feels like. 0 to 100km/h takes 6 seconds. The engine is already pretty damn snappy off from a stand still, but right after you’ve begun moving you get the feeling the torque converter has suddenly locked up harder and you just hurtle towards wherever you steer the car with a seriously addictive pace ever. How can you ever bring yourself to drive this car sensibly?

The power just keeps coming and coming and coming, and it’s so smooth that you feel the redline should be a good 1,000rpm higher than its 7,000rpm limit. In fact, if you really put the pedal to the metal, the gearbox shifts at about 7,200rpm – slightly over the redline, something I’ve never seen an auto gearbox do.

t’s not nearly up there with the madness that the Lancer Evolution 9’s torque levels give you but to make up for it you get to listen to the straight-six sing too. The best part is, all that power gets sent to the rear wheels instead of every other hatch out there in the market which is either front wheel drive or all wheel drive. This means potentially A LOT of sideways fun.

Steering is of the classic BMW sharpness, translating your steering movements into where the 130i’s nose points ever so precisely. The chassis felt somewhat neutral to me, complying to my every command. That’s how M Sport usually is, there’s just no warning when you’re approaching the danger zone - it remains confident and steady, then suddenly you’re in deep shit. But I never did get to the deep shit part with the 130i.

Coming down Genting was lovely, and the 6-speed gearbox did its just very well, keeping the car in the right gear and downshifting for extra engine braking whenever needed. I thought the choices it made was pretty smart, but then I decided it would be a waste letting the gearbox do the shifting for me and switched to manual shifting mode.

In manual mode, you can manually change the gear ratios using paddle shifts on the M Steering wheel. However the paddles are abit unconventional – instead of the usual left for downshift and right for upshift, you push the paddle away from you to downshift and push the paddle towards you to upshift. Both paddles on the left and right work the same way.

The BMW 130i M Sport also has keyless entry and go, which means the key fob doesn’t need to leave your pocket. Just approach the car, and when you’re near enough to reach for the door handle and pull it, the driver’s door will unlock at the same time. There are also little LEDs at the bottom of every door handle, presumably a safety feature so you can look at what’s on the ground, or something.

Get in the car, and press the Engine Start button. Upon hearing the sound of the engine firing up, a friend of mine exclaimed, “Is this the stock exhaust system?!!” to which I replied: “Yup. M Sport mah!” I suppose the M division engineers ensured the car sounds as great as it drives.

Now the bad - practically unusable rear legroom, sound system could have been more premium, a relatively small fuel tank compared to how much the engine guzzles, and despite a 330 liter claimed boot capacity, it really doesn’t look like a lot.

But seriously, if you want a practical car, buy an MPV or something. The 130i M Sport is for the purist, and I understand why BMW wants its new 1-Series Coupe, especially the 135i, to be the spiritual successor of the likes of the E30 of the yesteryears.

Perhaps you could have as much fun as you can have in this car with something cheaper. Maybe even BMW’s own MINI Cooper S might do the trick. But I suppose BMW considers the premium justifiable because of it’s rear wheel drive configuration. The 1-Series has always had it’s price tag going against it no matter which engine option and form in many markets, not just our own. Which makes it abit hard to recommend this car to anyone because of the many other choices of hot hatches around. But still, it’s bloody fun.

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