



By N2H

The 2009 BMW X3

December 31st, 2008 by Justin

For those that love European engineered vehicles, one of the brands to look at is of course BMW. BMW offers plenty of power, performance and usually understated luxury in its vehicles, but for those that love the thrill of driving, it’s tough to beat the BMW ride. BMW has a very formidable line up that ranges from roadsters to coupes, to sedans to an SUV, however one vehicle that is making waves is the BMW X3. While most would characterize the X3 as just another SUV, you would be wrong. The X3 is actually an SAV. What is an SAV?, it’s a sport activity vehicle made for all road capability and utility but offering plenty of car like performance- pretty much it is a fancy way for saying the X3 is a crossover.

Lots of Power and Performance
The X3 offers decent power, but much less than you would have expected from a sport activity vehicle. The engine is actually the X5’s lower trim engine- a 3.0 liter I-6 that offers about 260 horsepower. To make matters worse, with this smaller 6 cylinder engine, the fuel efficiency could be much better. You only get about 16 mpg in the city. Mated to this engine is either a 6 speed manual transmission or a 6 speed automatic with Steptronic manual shift. Add to this vehicle quality amenities perfect for driver and family, 17 inch wheels, a panoramic moonroof, some stability control and a roll over sensor and a nicely done dash and you got a well rounded vehicle.

It should also be noted that there are some basic changes for the 2009 model, mostly just minimal, but it does add XDrive and some new badging making the vehicle stand out a little more. The X3 is a little pricey at about $40K. However, for those that love everything BMW, this car definitely deserves a look.

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