BMW X1 sDrive20d - Design Review

The blue propeller logo has changed the way we (Indian ) car lovers dream about cars. I mean I don’t know anybody who wouldn’t want a BMW in their dream garage – be it a 3- or a 5-series as a daily driver of the mighty M5 or the M6 for that matter. To help you get closer to your bimmer dreams, BMW India has recently introduced the X1, which they proudly call a compact crossover. We had a day to check out if the X1 can be your next dream-come-true bimmer.

We Indians have a soft spot for SUVs and an even softer one for premium badges on the bonnet. BMW has been spot on with X1. Being the smallest member of BMW’s X-family, it sure looks like a mini-SUV and that’s the battle half-won for BMW.  What makes the X1 a sure shot blockbuster is its pricing and positioning. With the range starting at a little above Rs 20 lakh, the X1 with its BMW badge on the bonnet is destined to give everything ranging from the Fortuners, Outlanders and C-RVs of the world nightmares.

The X1 is unmistakably a BMW. It is a pretty long car and the low roofline gives it a nice sporty squat. There are plenty of design cues that we’ve seen in a lot of recent beemers. The front end, for instance features bigger kidney grille, like the new 5- and 7- series. The roofline swoops behind in a coupe-like fashion of the X6 and there is a lot of flame surfacing all around. The front end looks pretty dominating and sporty with the large kidney grille, a flatter face and a blacked-out inverted air dam with a silver-finished splitter at the bottom. The rakish headlamps with an eye-lid treatment enhance the front end visuals and the high mounted foglamps complement them very nicely. Xenon lights with headlamp washers are available only on the 20d Exclusive as standard.

Move to the side and the X1 looks a bit more car-like and docile than your regular SUV. It doesn’t sport the roofline of a high rise tower nor heavy plastic cladding adding visual bulk. It maintains the agile and athletic profile you’d relate to a BMW and actually excels in that. At 1545mm, it is about 125mm taller than a 3 series sedan but is modestly lower to even a Skoda Yeti. An inclined sharp waistline complements the swooping roofline and a sudden kink in the glass area near the c-pillar. The inverted side skirts in silver finish add to the sportiness.

The rear is characterized by minimal overhangs and sharp rakish tail lamps that mimic heating elements at night and look great. The 20d Exclusive edition also gets stylish 17-inch star-spoke alloys shod with 225/50 R17 runflat tyres. If SUVs are your weapon of choice to shoo away small cars and auto rickshaws clogging the streets, the X1 might just not serve the purpose. It is a smart looking car, a 3 series that has been on a serious weight gain regime but is far from the Schwarzenegger aura that SUVs like Fortuner, Endeavour or even CR-V and Scorpio come with.

Also check:

BMW X1 User Experience

BMW X1 Performance Review