Sdog2012

are these out yet??? i saw one in downtown minneapolis on saturday night with manufacturer plates from chicago, looked pretty nice but i thought they wouldnt be out for a while?

Crazy Bimmer

Yea they are out.

scalbert

The X3 is supposed to start arriving in March for customer delivery. Dealers have some demo cars for test drive and to get people to pre-order.

I'm waiting until March to purchase ours.

Crazy Bimmer

Thats what i really meant.

Beltfed

Nice but really overpriced for what it is...

Crazy Bimmer

You know, i havent been keeping updated too much on their pricing for it. How much does the 3.0 start at?

How does it compare to the x5 3.0 pricing?

scalbert

That depends on what you are looking for. Our RX300 stickered for about $40k which is what I have priced the X3 that we want. However, Lexus was offering deep incentives on the remaining RX300 inventory last spring so we purchased it for much less.

Having driven the RX300 for about nine months now we have found it to be a fine vehicle; very luxurious and smooth. But it is devoid of all emotion. I know it is still an SUV but it lacks any emotion and I hate driving it.

The new X3 is almost the same size, maybe a little bigger in the cargo room. It may not be as smooth and sofa like as the RX300 but does provide the same amenities. Yet it still posses a certain BMW characteristic in the driving feel. That is what we are purchasing. We are getting a similar vehicle for about the same sticker price as our RX300 but it has superior driving dynamics to it. So to us, the value is fine.

scalbert

A fully loaded X3 3.0i with the 5AT and Nav will run about $45k. We are getting the 6-Speed manual but haven't decided on the Nav. If we don't get the Nav ours will be priced at abotu $41k.

Base price on the X3 2.5i is about $33k.

Crazy Bimmer

Not bad at all. I'd rock it.


I miss that 3.0 engine.

scalbert

I wish I had. One year and a few months after we purchased our E46 '99 328i the MY01 came out with the 330i (we purchased ours in June of 99 so just before the 00 came out). I am a bit worried we will be in the same boat with the X3 is we purchase the first MY of the new design as we did with the 328i; a new motor would be out soon that I would have preferred.

But as with anything, improvements will be made and that is the cost of being one the first to own a new model.

But seriously, although the peak HP output was lower, the torque wasn't much different between the 2.8 and 3.0 motor. But the smoothness of both I6 motors and the turbine like sound was a thrill.

Beltfed

For $45k I would consider a V8 Touareg, powerful and has plenty of room.

A 3 series wagon probably has more room than the X3 does.

But whatever works for you, that's all that counts.

Crazy Bimmer

Beltfed

Come on, dont knock it untill you try it.

Beltfed

I'll try it soon enough.....I'm not knocking it that hard. If I were, you would certainly know it.

NOVAwhiteTypeS

yes they are out and i test drove one @ bmw sterling VA.

not my cup of tea.

watered down x5 IMO

KCPreki11

6 Speed SUV, that has to be weird.

scalbert

This is my wife's vehicle and she doesn't like the FX or the Touareg. She does like the X3 so I won't argue...

Nope, the X3 is noticeably larger than the 3-Series wagon which is what I wanted her to get once we determined the twins double stroller would not fit in her 328i. The room comes by way of height mainly. The X3 isn't much smaller than the X5.

Jaydef03

SUV in 6 speed. AWWWWW!

Chaptorial

That truck looks nice but it seems to small on the inside.

JZ

I disagree--I saw one out on a test drive the other day and thought it looked very cheap. Lotsa plastic on the outside.

cusdaddy

The C&D review of the X3 was brutal. Actually, brutal isn't a hard enough word for what they said about that truck. I saw it at the dealer when I test drove the X5, and I sat inside. It's overall pretty nice, but for the $$, personally I'd rather have a FX or Touareg.

But Scalbert, if you like the truck, please enjoy and best of luck with it!! Just please test drive it first, as C&D and a few other reviews said the ride was downright harsh.

chungkopi

bmw shouldn't have made X3..

NOVAwhiteTypeS

the x3 actually has more cargo room than the x5...

Zoot

the x3 looks like a cheap pos (even though it is actually fairly nice). BMW NEEDS to color the bumpers and make it look less like a Rav4 or CRV

scalbert

That is why I am waiting as I will take several test drives including the manual version with sport suspension. Although I would prefer a tighter suspension, if it is too rough I will have to pass for my twin daughters' sake.

However, from what I have gathered, the ride was better than the X5 which I tested thoroughly. I'll be getting more into this in the upcoming months and of course will report back.

srika

Chaptorial

Doesn't look all that bad. Its just that the X5 is soooo much nicer.

gavriil

What year is your RX?

About the "no emotion" RX comments. I think you would have been surprised at the difference of the limited run "Silversport" RX vehicles, which carried the Euro tuned suspension. Big difference.

gavriil

Scalbert, I am guessing a new engine by BMW will be available for the X3 next year. Rumors call for 3.5 liters and 275HP. The configuration is unknown at this point.

scalbert

2003...

The vehicle rides smooth but is numb and not to my liking. I heard about the Silversport edition but it was not available. Going from an E46 328i (with sport suspension) to the RX300 is a drastic change. We are hoping the X3 may fill an intermediate role.

scalbert

I was under the same impression and will be researching this further.

Sarlacc

The X5 is supposed to be very problematic. I do know of one friend who traded his in for FX cause he tired of dealing with it. Hopefully, the X3 will not suffer from this downfall.

It will on the other hand be interesting to see how if at all the X3 eats into X5 sales.
Seeing as the 3.0 engines are shared and the X3 actually has more usable cargo room. Bmw seems to think this will be a non-issue. we'll see...

Joe5.0

I remember that C&D review pretty well. I think it was the biggest flame job on a BMW they have ever done.

They said something to the effect of "it is stiffly sprung, so it rides horrible, but it is top-heavy so it handles like an SUV, worst of both worlds". Haha :o

I hate saying this, but I hope it's a collosal flop, just like I hope the Cayenne is a flop. WTF are these companies dissovling their images to make some soccer mommy SUV's? Let the masses drive Escalade's and caravan's and make some godamn good looking sedan's and coupes. The 5 series has been out for how long now, a couple months? I have seen only 1 on the road. I used to love BMW, but now I think I have lost all hope for them.

I still want a 03 540i 6 speed though. Black/black with a nice set of 19's and some dark ass tint. Too bad it's the last of a dead species.

gavriil

Wow...just got that RX then. You must really not have liked it...but then I am wondering, did you not test drive it? Not sure what happened there...

gavriil

Look in the Automotive News section. I have some articles in there with rumors about that...

gavriil

Canibalism of X5 from the X3 will happen but only for a year or so. The new X5 will carry a much larger interior with a 3rd row seat available. Same with the next ML next year.

gavriil

The reason "these companies" dont let the masses buy "Escalade's and caravan's" is because the want to make more money. Penetrate new markets, expand lineup breadth and depth. It's simple and it CAN work. Porsche will double its overall sales because of the Cayenne. What's better? I say it's better with the Cayenne. Porsche and BMW are out there to make as much money as possible like all companies. Especially public companies.

About the X3. I have read a number of articles (not the C&D article) and they were all positive. Especially the European articles (and it make sense, since they like vehicles that handle and dont mind the tight suspensions as distances are limited there).

gavriil

Ok here we go:

-----------------------------------

BMW X3 3.0i

A German joins the Roughriders.
BY AARON ROBINSON
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFFREY G. RUSSELL
January 2004


Boy, have we got a darling little German family car to show you! It's handsome, it's poised, and it's six-cylinder powerful. It attacks roads like a sports car, just chews them right to pieces. You also get four-wheel drive for better asphalt adhesion. It's really something!

This blue thing? No, no, no, that's just the new BMW X3. We're talking about the BMW 325xi sport wagon, base price of $32,845, and a humdinger of a quality automobile. Put down the magazine right now and go call a dealer. He has plenty.

Whadja say? You want us to shut up about the 325xi because you bought this magazine to read about the X3? Okay. Fine.

But maybe you don't really want to hear about the X3. Conventional wisdom says if you really wanted a true sport-utility, you wouldn't be talking to BMW. And if you really wanted a BMW, you wouldn't even think of buying an SUV.

Except for those 43,000 or so people who annually motor off in a new BMW X5 sport-ute. Worldwide, the X5's success is encouraging BMW to sink its tires deeper into the SUV swamp, especially since Americans treat all station wagons as if they come standard with tuberculosis. We're less at ease with this latest BMW, however. The X3's flaws are glaring, especially from a company known for clipping the perfection apex tighter than most.

More specifically, we like the idea of the X3 better than the vehicle itself. Our ears pricked up when BMW invited us to sample what is essentially a smaller, lighter, less expensive X5. Gosh, just saying that feels good. Plus, the X3 is assembled in Arnold Schwarzenegger's hometown of Graz, Austria, not by BMW, but by a subcontractor, Magna Steyr Fahrzeugtechnik AG & Co. KG. Armed with that fact you can suck the air right out of the room at your next dinner party.

The X3 is certainly lighter. Towed by the same 225-hp, 3.0-liter inline six as that in its bigger brother, the X5 3.0i, the 4095-pound X3 weighs between 600 and 700 pounds less than the X5. It is certainly cheaper, too. Although prices weren't finalized at press time, the X3 should start at about $32,000 for a base 2.5i with the 189-hp, 2.5-liter inline six and top out just north of $40,000 for a fully loaded 3.0i with the 225-horse six like the one pictured here. The 2004 X5 starts at $40,995 and is hurdling safely over $60,000 equipped with the bigger engine, the 4.4-liter V-8, and all the boxes checked.

Smaller? Just by gerbil whiskers. The X3's wheelbase is less than an inch shy of the X5's, and the X3's black-plastic bumpers are only four inches closer together. The width and height differences are minimal as well. The X3's seating space offers more rear-seat headroom and legroom. Compared with the X5, the X3's cargo hold is actually bigger by 30 percent with the rear seats folded (almost) flat, 26 percent with the seats up. The unloved 325xi wagon is significantly tighter in every respect, especially in the back.

We also like that BMW spliced the 3-series' curve-straightening DNA into the X3, including the same basic front-strut, multilink-rear suspension with some extra structural beefiness for off-road duty. The X3 also debuts BMW's new xDrive, a nifty single-speed torque-transfer coupling with a microchip-administered multiplate clutch pack that constantly varies engine thrust between the front and rear axles from 100 percent rear to 50/50. Combined with brake-based traction control and a hill-descent function that works the brakes to control downward velocity, the xDrive is a more flexible doohickey than the planetary gear differential and its fixed 38-percent-front, 62-percent-rear torque split found in the 325xi and the '03 X5 (the '04 X5 also features xDrive).

If the X3 never rose up from the paper, we'd be quaffing schnapps in its honor. The doubt creeps in out on the road. The otherwise supple 3-series suspension has been radically hardened in the X3, kind of the way they harden ICBM silos. Shod in the rear with the 45-series, W-rated rubber of the optional Sport package, the X3's ride is hard-edged, concussive, and insufferable. Hit a craggy, undulating section of road, and the X3 bucks like a mare with Little Richard's pinky ring stuck under the saddle. Do it at speed, and the X3 is almost as good as a guillotine for testing your neck joints.

The ceaseless shuddering of our test vehicle did its best to separate interior panels from the walls and the seats from their mounts. A few squeaks and rattles took carcinogenic root and were spreading. Base versions of the X3 are slightly better with 55-series, H-rated tires all around and spongier shocks, but only slightly. The X3 clomps down the road, and BMWs shouldn't clomp. Those who commute on glassy-smooth freeways may never be bothered by the X3's ride, but everyone else will be.

BMW's Ultimate Driving Machine mantra and the ceaseless quest for the intergalactic lap-time record at the Nürburgring are surely behind the X3's crusty suspension. No question, the X3 handles twisties with Bavarian aplomb. The xDrive takes its directions in part from a lateral-g sensor. As the X3 bends into a corner, the clutches sling more engine output to the rear axle. The strategy frees up the front tires to concentrate on the vital job of turning the car. The X3's rack is a bit numb and isolated, but the nose darts crisply and without the pushy understeer that plagues most four-wheel-drivers. It even rewards bold drivers with a little tail wagging and pulled a no-arguments 0.88 g on the skidpad, the highest grip we've ever measured for an SUV.

The quickest X3, the one with the 225-horse engine and six-speed manual, isn't poky, either, although the inline six from the 330i has to work harder to keep the X3's 4095 pounds moving. We saw 60 mph zing by in 7.4 seconds, a few ticks quicker than a 325xi wagon (0.3 second), and a lot of ticks (0.7 second) quicker than an X5 3.0i. The X3 constructs a quarter-mile in 15.5 seconds at 87 mph, a half-second faster than the wagon, and then stops from 70 mph in 157 feet, the same as a Mitsu Evolution.

That's great, except that on back-to-reality roads the rigid suspension never rests, never submits to a firm set. It keeps the body bouncing around and the driver making continual course corrections to stay on path. Sitting several extra inches above the roll center doesn't help the steady drain of confidence, or the steady drain of color from your face. Several drivers felt a rising ball of motion-related nausea after thrashing the car down curvy roads.

As long as the X3 remains parked, we have fewer problems with it. The dashboard's mix of geometric and organic shapes, accented by broad swaths of battleship-gray plastic, looks like a Z4 cockpit that's been through the penny squeezer. Hard surfaces with deep graining abound, and the door handles are just rough black plastic. BMW charges a bit less for an X3, and it's intended to have some sport-ute toughness, so we accept the thrifting.

There are touches of epicurean taste: French-seamed double pleats grace the optional leather sport seats, and the silver accents of electrocoated plastic sport a weird fingerprint pattern that somehow works. The navigation screen motors into the dash when not wanted, a feature we'd gladly pay extra for in the 5- and 7-series.

Those with seat time in an X5 will feel right at home behind the X3's yoke. The buckets sit high off the floor, the knees bent more sharply than in a car, and the pedals stepped on more than into. The rim of the three-spoke sport steering wheel is python meaty, the six-speed shifter knob light to the touch. Back-benchers will enjoy good knee- and headroom, although the flat and firm seatback can't be adjusted for rake and tends toward the vertical. The bottoms are shallow and formless, so expect rear-seat passengers to act like unsecured rolled-steel coils during suspension workouts.

During our time with this truck, we never explored anything more rigorous than a dirt road, even though BMW engineers claim that it will endure much rougher treatment. The lack of underbody shielding bodes ill for serious slick-rock crawling, although a tow-truck driver would surely be grateful for your call. A BMW spurting its fluids could be the inspiration for endless bar jokes.

So, should you just forget about off-roading and go for the 325xi wagon instead? The X3 does have more space along with cargo-floor rails for an add-on bike rack if you require such things. The xDrive is neat and not available on the wagon. To BMW, we say, get thee to it. When a company like BMW starts reserving its best technology for its trucks, it's time to start building bomb shelters.

Here's the solution, BMW: Ease up the damping on the X3 so passengers don't feel like kernels in a Jiffy Pop, or slip the 3.0-liter engine and xDrive into the 325xi wagon.

Until then, if you still want an X3, perhaps it wasn't really a BMW you wanted after all.

COUNTERPOINT

RON KIINO
I might have thought more of the X3 had I not driven it back-to-back with a Subaru Forester 2.5XT. Yes, the Bimmer is ritzier, offers more niceties, such as a power liftgate and hill-descent control, and handles and brakes in a league above, but it's more than two seconds slower to 60, a lot harsher in the ride department, and about 15 grand more on the bottom line. And as far as I can tell, it doesn't offer any real advantage in rear-seat space, cargo room, or all-weather traction. By itself, the X3 is an able performer, but next to the Forester, it simply seems like an inflated 3-series wagon, in both size and price.

PATRICK BEDARD
I've seen sillier cars. There was an angry, slotted Bizzarrini GT back in 1968 that scraped its belly on the ground like a skulking lizard. The AMC Gremlin, a subcompact created by chopping the useful space out of the compact Hornet, was pretty silly, too. But this BMW X3 is the 21st-century record holder. Especially with the sport-suspension option and six-speed box, BMW seems to have combined the worst features of sports cars and SUVs—the jarring ride, fast-wearing tires, and dinky cargo area of the former with the excessive weight and precious pricing of the latter. For $41,000 you get a sports car on stilts. Mondo silly.

LARRY WEBSTER
A BMW sport-ute had me skeptical from the start, but I grew to appreciate BMW's first effort, the X5. I once used an X5 to tow my race car—at a very comfortable and fast velocity—and once at the track exploited the car's flexibility by using it for a handful of not-too-slow demonstration laps around the course. I couldn't have done both in the 5-series wagon. But I don't think the X3 is any more useful than the 3-series wagon. Plus, the X3 gives up plenty of performance, and it's the worst-riding BMW I've ever driven. Sure, the X3 has a roomier interior, but from a driver's standpoint, it's not even a contest—I'd take the wagon version.

Highs: Inline-six sweetness with a brainy four-wheel-drive system, adequate cargo area, corners well.

Lows: Rides like the axles are welded right to the frame (pack aspirin).

The Verdict: Less appealing on the road than on paper.

C/D TEST RESULTS

ACCELERATION (Seconds)
Zero to 30 mph: 2.0
40 mph: 3.6
50 mph: 5.1
60 mph: 7.4
70 mph: 9.7
80 mph: 12.4
90 mph: 16.6
100 mph: 21.2
110 mph: 28.3
120 mph: 38.4
Street start, 5-60 mph: 8.5
Top-gear acceleration, 30-50 mph: 11.7
50-70 mph: 11.6
Standing 1/4-mile: 15.5 sec @ 87 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 132 mph

BRAKING
70-0 mph @ impending lockup: 157 ft

HANDLING
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.88 g
Understeer: minimal moderate excessive

FUEL ECONOMY
EPA city driving: 17 mpg
EPA highway driving: 25 mpg
C/D-observed: 15 mpg

INTERIOR SOUND LEVEL
Idle: 43 dBA
Full-throttle acceleration: 75 dBA
70-mph cruising: 70 dBA

BMW X3 3.0i

Vehicle type: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 5-door wagon
Estimated price as tested: $41,000 (estimated base price: $36,000)
Options on test car: Sport package (includes sport suspension and tires, 18-inch wheels, sport seats, and exterior trim), high-performance wheels and tires, sunroof, leather seats, navigation system, Cold Weather package (includes heated seats and ski bag), and xenon adaptive headlamps
Major standard accessories: power windows, seats, and locks; remote locking; A/C; cruise control; tilting and telescoping steering wheel; rear defroster and wiper
Sound system: BMW AM/FM radio/CD player, 10 speakers

ENGINE
Type: inline-6, aluminum block and head
Bore x stroke: 3.31 x 3.53 in, 84.0 x 89.6mm
Displacement: 182 cu in, 2979cc
Compression ratio: 10.2:1
Fuel-delivery system: port injection
Valve gear: chain-driven double overhead cams, 4 valves per cylinder, hydraulic lifters, variable intake- and exhaust-valve timing
Power (SAE net): 225 bhp @ 5900 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 214 lb-ft @ 3500 rpm
Redline: 6500 rpm

DRIVETRAIN
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Final-drive ratio: 3.64:1
4-wheel-drive system: full time with automatic front-axle engagement, no center differential, and open front and rear differentials with brake-based traction- and hill-descent control

Gear ... Ratio ... Mph/1000 rpm ... Max. test speed
I ... 4.35 ... 4.9 ... 32 mph (6500 rpm)
II ... 2.50 ... 8.6 ... 56 mph (6500 rpm)
III ... 1.66 ... 12.9 ... 84 mph (6500 rpm)
IV ... 1.23 ... 17.4 ... 113 mph (6500 rpm)
V ... 1.00 ... 21.4 ... 132 mph (6150 rpm)
VI ... 0.85 ... 25.2 ... 132 mph (5250 rpm)

DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 110.1 in
Track, front/rear: 60.0/60.7 in
Length/width/height: 179.7/73.0/66.0 in
Ground clearance: 8.0 in
Drag area, Cd (0.35) x frontal area (29.4 sq ft, est) 10.3 sq ft
Curb weight: 4095 lb
Weight distribution, F/R: 49.8/50.2%
Curb weight per horsepower: 18.2 lb
Fuel capacity: 17.7 gal

CHASSIS/BODY
Type: unit construction with 2 rubber-isolated body crossmembers
Body material: welded steel stampings

INTERIOR
SAE volume, front seat: 51 cu ft
rear seat: 45 cu ft
cargo, seats up/down: 30/71 cu ft
Practical cargo room, length of pipe: 125.0 in
largest sheet of plywood: 37.5 x 71.0 in
no. of 10 x 10 x 16-in boxes, seats up/down 16/40 cu ft
Front-seat adjustments: fore and aft, seatback angle, front height, rear height, lumbar support, thigh support
Restraint systems, front manual 3-point belts; driver and
passenger front, side, and curtain airbags
rear manual 3-point belts, curtain airbags

SUSPENSION
Front ind, strut located by 1 lateral link and 1 diagonal link,
coil springs, anti-roll bar
Rear ind, 1 trailing arm and 2 lateral links per side,
coil springs, anti-roll bar

STEERING
Type rack-and-pinion with variable power assist
Steering ratio 18.9:1
Turns lock-to-lock 3.3
Turning circle curb-to-curb 38.4 ft

BRAKES
Type hydraulic with vacuum power assist and
anti-lock control
Front 12.8 x 1.0-in vented disc
Rear 12.6 x 0.9-in vented disc

WHEELS AND TIRES
Wheel size/type F: 8.0 x 18 in, R: 9.0 x 18 in/cast aluminum
Tires Michelin Diamaris Radial X; F: 235/50WR-18,
R: 255/45WR-18
Test inflation pressures, F/R 32/32 psi
Spare high-pressure compact on steel wheel

gavriil

Holy shit, this thing is pretty quick with the 6 speed, it holds the road like the Z4 at 0.88g (I mean my 1996 Eagle Talon AWD TSi would do 0.87g and I never saw the limits after beating the shit out of it) and it also stops like a Boxster! Wow!

scalbert

Just took it in for the 5k service.

Yes, we did drive it and it was exactly as expected. Don't get me wrong, the vehicle is fantastic and does what it is meant to do perfectly; smooth, comfortable and isolating. We just prefer somethign different and it wasn't available at the time. Plus, we got quite a bit off the RX300 since it was just days before the release of the RX330.

scalbert

Which is why I will be taking several test rides; especially one with the sport suspension which we planned on getting. I am a bit worried about the ride quality especially with our twins. But heck, they don't even sleep in the RX300 right now so I may not even care.

The performance is in line with what I would like but hopefully not as harsh as claimed.

The part that got me was the cargo room increase over the X5. That was another reason we went with the RX300 as I was seriously looking at the X5 but the double stroller would not fit. It fit fine, with no room to spare, in the RX300 and it appears it will be about the same if not better in the X3.