Yahoo Autos The 2025 BMW X3 Gives You a Lot More—for the Same Money
You may not notice the BMW X3, but look around and you'll see them everywhere. What started out as a rough-riding 3-series SUV has really grown up and caught on, becoming one of the most popular compact luxury SUVs. This fourth generation we're driving here in sunny Spartanburg, South Carolina, may be the best one yet, despite offering less choice than before. The latest X3 does away with rear-wheel-drive sDrive versions; there are now just two models, both with all-wheel drive: the X3 30 xDrive and X3 M50 xDrive (the latter a bump up from the previous M40i). The best part is that output and fuel economy have increased, but you're really not paying any more than before.
What's Different
The new X3 comes from the longer, lower, wider school of design. Granted, we're not talking much, and the 112.8-inch wheelbase has remained unchanged since the last generation debuted in 2017. But the X3 30 xDrive is 1.3 inches longer, 0.6 inch lower, and roughly an inch wider. The design language is similar to the iX SUV. It does away with the cladding around the wheel arches, its headlights curve with the body into the fenders, and it boasts flush door handles. The twin grilles are taller than before. But they're not nearly iX tall; this treatment is far less offensive, and one could even call it handsome since the grilles don't bisect the front bumper.
Inside, the unchanged wheelbase pretty much dooms it to the same front and rear passenger volume, but that's fine because our six-foot-two test driver can comfortably sit behind himself. The interior dimensions are within an inch of the old car's. It's worth noting, though, that the 2025 figures assume you have the full-length Sky Lounge panoramic roof. It's a fixed-glass panel with an opaque screen that rolls back. It makes the car feel roomier, as does a much lower dash that features an iX-style curved display and reconfigured central air vents that are much lower.
The familiar iDrive controller and the curved display are running BMW's Operating System 9, an in-house development of the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) software stack. The controls are fairly simple, but you sometimes need to wade three levels down to shut off certain features. Admittedly, these are mostly things you do while parked and are tied to a specific owner's key, and they don't interfere with driving. Ahead of the shifter, which is much like that in an iX, sits an open well with two cupholders, a wireless charging pad, and a couple of USB-C ports. It's really attractive, and mighty handy.
The body's extra length is mostly grafted onto the rear overhang, which is also bit broader thanks to a slightly widened rear track. The upshot is a nearly 10 percent increase in rear cargo space, going from 29 to 32 cubic feet with the seats up. Flop the seatbacks down, and maximum cargo capacity likewise increases, from 63 to 67 cubes.
Four-cylinder Power and Efficiency
The X3 30, which again uses a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, gets a bump in output, rising to 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. That's seven more horsepower than before and a substantial 37-lb-ft increase in torque. There are several reasons for this. For one, a 48-volt hybrid system has been added, but that just smooths the operation of the stop-start system and adds a little torque to make upshifts more seamless. The real power improvements include a dual fuel-injection strategy that squirts high- and low-pressure fuel into the combustion chamber, improvements to the turbocharger and intercooler, redesigned intake ports and combustion chambers, and a new active coil ignition system. There's one final change that makes this engine much more efficient at the same time: the Miller combustion cycle.
A Miller-cycle engine differs from the traditional Otto-cycle engine in that it keeps the intake valves open well beyond bottom dead center. This shortens the compression stroke relative to the power stroke, but this only works if the incoming fuel-air mixture is compressed. Traditionally, a supercharger is required because turbos have too much lag, but that's not the impediment it once was. How much more efficient is the 30 xDrive's new engine? Try 29 mpg combined (27 city/33 highway) compared to last year's 24 mpg combined. It's also 4 mpg better than last year's sDrive rear-wheel-drive model.
The eight-speed automatic transmissions ratios and the final-drive ratio are the same as last year, but the car is approximately 50 pounds heavier at an estimated 4200 pounds. That adds up to a surplus in power that you feel off the line, at least initially. It should be enough to improve the 60-mph time by two or three tenths of a second. We measured 6.2 seconds with the previous-generation xDrive30i. BMW is saying 6.0 seconds to 60 mph for the new 30 xDrive, and we think it can do better. We could do without the goofy engine note soundtrack that BMW plays through the speakers though. You can shut it off, but it's one of those three-menu-deep things.
The new 30 also feels impeccably smooth in the limited run we had around South Carolina. No choppiness, no harshness, just a well-planted feel. The tires in the standard fitment are the same size as before, but they're mounted on 19-inch wheels that are an inch wider at 8.5 inches instead of 7.5 inches. Perhaps that's why the steering felt direct and responsive, with a decent amount of self-aligning torque to give the driver a good sense of what is going on at the tires' contact patches. The brakes feel like they have good effectiveness and feedback, as well, but a panic-stop test will have to wait until we get one back home.
From M40i to M50
What of the M50 six-cylinder? It's the same 3.0-liter displacement as last year, but it gets a name change because it gets an even bigger boost in performance. Power is up a rather modest 11 horsepower, now listed as 393 horses. Torque, on the other hand, rises by a healthy 59 pound-feet to 428 pound-feet. Here again, these power and torque increases come with large fuel-economy gains. This year's M50 is good for 27 mpg combined (25 city/30 highway), while last year's M40i got 23 mpg combined. Wow!
The list of changes is similar: redesigned intake ports and combustion chambers, a new dual-injection system, a new ignition system, a revised turbocharger and intercooler, and the Miller cycle. Other changes that fall into the M-specific category include optimized piston cooling and new main bearing shells and caps. Also, the returning 48-volt hybrid system has been tweaked so it mounts inside the eight-speed transmission directly to the crankshaft.
In the end, we didn't have the space to open the M50 up, but you can feel the distinct pull away for a stoplight. There's enough extra grunt back there that BMW enlarged the standard rear-tire setup, from 245/50R-19 to 285/40R-20. Go with the optional 21s, and the fronts get wider as well, from 245s to 255s. Still, we didn't think the chassis was all that composed in the stiffer Sport mode. And the steering reacted so sharply that it didn't build up much feel. Comfort mode was definitely better, but this one deserves a full workup back on home turf.
About That Price
With only two trim levels, the base price of the X3 has gone up. But that's not the whole story. Not many people were buying the rear-wheel-drive model, according to the X3 planner we spoke to, so that seems like a theoretical loss.
That leads us to the year-over-year price increase for the 30 xDrive: from $49,895 to $50,675. But certain optional equipment is now standard, another nod to reducing complexity. Seat heaters and wireless charging, for example. Those two things would've cost you $1000 last year.
What about the M50 versus the M40i, at $65,275 versus $62,895 previously? Well, again you have to add $1000 to the M40i for seat heaters and wireless charging, plus another $1300 for the now-standard M Sport differential, and you get $65,195. You want the M Sport differential, don't you? Of course you do, so that model's price is also virtually unchanged.
From where we sit, you get all that power and all that extra fuel economy essentially for free with either 2025 BMW X3 model. The revamped interior and exterior are just a bonus. That's what we call a steal.
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