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      04-07-2018, 01:56 AM   #14
Quixalcoatl
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Quote:
Originally Posted by srswans View Post
Test drove X2 yesterday against its closest competitors. I was surprised but I really liked the X2 ride, handling and seats. Doesn't feel like an SUV; more like a sport sedan.

...

Last test drive was in the XC40. It's the tallest of the three. Ride was much smoother than the E-Pace but too soft for me. Seats were excellent though - slightly better than the X2. Engine well-matched to chassis.

I like the X2 the best and I could see owning one. However, its a little underpowered for my tastes. I'll reconsider it if BMW produces a higher horsepower version.
I just ordered my M Sport X2 [US] last night. I drove pretty much every car in the same class save for the E-Pace. I agree the XC40 was too soft. It had too much body roll, and typical to the minimalist Swedish aesthetic, it lacked character on the interior. I also found the interface to be clumsy and confusing. And, the engine cutoff feature had a much greater lag than the one featured on the X2. I actually had to turn it off on the test drive because it was so annoying.

The wife and I also test drove the Lincoln MKC, Mercedes GLA, Mazda CX5, and BMW X1 and X3. While the MKC was the most 'luxe' and the GLA was the sportiest, we found the X2 to have the best balance of space, responsiveness, HP:Weight, and features we were looking for. Not to mention, it has to be one of the sexiest cars in the small crossover SUV class. I personally don't find it underpowered, considering most entry level vehicles in this class range between 130 - 186 HP for 3200-4000 lb. vehicles. That's just crazy IMHO. The 228 HP engine seemed more than adequate for freeway merging and spirited commutes, which is what it'll mostly be used for.

My big gripe, probably along with many others, is the "xDrive" badge on the X1 and X2. For our order, we opted for the sDrive version. It griped me that the xDrive is marketed as and AWD vehicle, but it's largely glossed over, unless you ask or do your research, that the typical commuter will never benefit from this feature in the X1 or X2 due to the transverse engine design and the 100% FWD bias. I personally don't have a problem with FWD for a commuter, as this car will never see the track. However, I do have a problem with deceptive marketing and sales practices.

Something else I'd like to note, is that this class of vehicle is all over the place. On one end you have Honda's HR-V which has crap tons of space, but absolutely zero get up and go. (It deserves 160 HP minimum. 200 would be far more acceptable.) On the other end you have something like Mercedes' AMG GLA with a ton of pep and effectively no more space than what you'd get in a small compact like a Mazda3. I think that car manufactures are a bit confused on what the market expects from this class of vehicle, and that's why this class seems so schizophrenic from brand to brand. I feel that the BMW not only found a balance between performance and utility with the X2, but I think they're going to set the standard for this class of small crossover.
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