One for all: The BMW X1 rolls off the assembly line at the Regensburg plant, and all drive concepts come from the same. Petrol engines, plug-in hybrids and even the electric version called iX1. The possible uses of the compact SUV are just as diverse, the X1 is, so to speak, one for everything. Also and above all for driving pleasure. And that too on snow. We tried the four-wheel drive versions on a closed slope.
Details about the BMW X1 can be found here in the driving report! Even if BMW cars are increasingly being built with safety aspects in mind and assistance systems are trying to force more and more functions on the driver or want to take on more and more tasks independently: driving pleasure is – with all reasonableness – still at BMW always the maxim. This also applies to the bestseller X1, the most popular BMW in Austria, in all variants. For real fun on snow and ice, you naturally need all-wheel drive (front-wheel drive only available for petrol and diesel engines, not for PHEVs and iX1), with the different drives having different properties and therefore have their advantages and disadvantages in detail. In any case, the DSC anti-skid system can be switched off completely (which not all manufacturers allow). Thanks to two motors, it has an electronically controlled all-wheel drive and mobilizes a total of 230 kW/313 hp, plus a system torque of a mighty 494 Nm. That power is delivered beautifully linearly, and that’s exactly the advantage when you want to drift on snow. No version is as easy to master and dance through a slalom as the iX1. As long as the surface is reasonably level. Or you drive uphill. Things are very different going downhill, because this is where the weight of the e-car comes into play. The iX1 easily weighs over 2 tons, in the basic version exactly 2010 kg without the driver. That is 355 kg more than the X1 xDrive23i, the four-cylinder mild hybrid turbo petrol engine with 218 hp. You notice this extra weight, because it pushes mercilessly downhill if you don’t have your speed under control. The iX1 even offers a reasonable range of 417 to 440 kilometers – of course it’s less when driving for fun in winter.Classic with combustion enginesThe pure combustion engines ( we also refer to mild hybrids as pure combustion engines) do not have this weight problem. The lightest X1 weighs just 1500 kg, but is a front-wheel drive (sDrive18i), the lightest all-wheel drive is the 1655 kg X1 xDrive23i. The two diesels (X1 xDrive 20d and 23d) add 35 kg. That’s more comfortable going downhill and easier to control. In the slalom drift on the level, the suppleness and controllability of the electric drive is somewhat lacking due to the concept, because it takes a little moment for the power to be available when you step on the gas. Especially if you leave the DSC switched on or activated and it intervenes. Here, a three-cylinder petrol engine drives the front axle (with 136 or 150 hp) and an additional electric motor drives the rear axle (80 kW/109 hp or 130 kW/177 hp), resulting in a system output of 245 or 326 hp and a system torque of 477 Nm. When accelerating on snow, the power first comes from behind, uphill the rear can “come” slightly for a short time before the combustion engine is fully there and pulls over the front wheels. You have to get used to it, and the interaction of the drives works very well. With this new PHEV generation, the X1 offers an electric range of 76 to 92 kilometers according to WLTP. Conveniently, the 47-litre tank is even larger than that of the combustion engines (but the battery, at 14.2 kWh net, is of course smaller than the 64.7 kWh battery in the iX1). The bottom line: BMW has been very polarizing lately (see BMW iX or the new 7 series). With the X1, the people of Munich are pursuing a different line: everyone should and should like it. The look is suitable for the masses, although not boring, and when it comes to drives, everyone can find something that suits them. If you can afford the fun: The X1 price list starts at 43,200 euros, with all-wheel drive at 47,800 euros.
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