Quote:
Originally Posted by dmboone25
I think you might be missing the point - RWD was the distinguishing feature by which BMW acquired a dedicated following...so now they want to go FWD, why? To fit in with everyone else?
This seems quite stupid to me....
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1) They're only going FWD-based on their smallest cars, when they come out with FWD 3's, 5's, and 7's, THEN there's a problem.
2) Why are they going FWD on the small cars? Because small cars that are supposed to be practical that are RWD based are extremely limited in interior space, and that makes them uncompetitive in the market. The 1-Series sedan/hatch and X1/X2 aren't sports cars.
They're practical cars that are sporty. While staying RWD based would make them more attractive to a small group of enthusiast buyers, making a FWD/AWD 1-Series sedan/hatch and X1/X2 means the vehicles can remain small, but the cabins can be much roomier, which like it or not, is more valuable to more people in that segment.
So, they're here to stay, at least until they go electric, at which time they can make the cabin as big as they want because the shape of the car won't be dictated by needing to fit a long engine under a long hood. And while I get the "now I have to look at other cars" mentality, you're going to find the new versions are at least as compelling and sporty as any of the competition, if not more. The X1 and X2 continue to win comparison tests. We'll see how the 1-Series sedan and hatch do, but I don't see any reason why they wouldn't continue the trend. So you might not be able to get that RWD X1 again, but you can still get an excellent handling vehicle that is more fun than anything else you can get in the segment.