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BMW X6 revealed
By Yoann Besnard on 18 December 2007 | 
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BMW has officially revealed its latest model, the X6 model, which will make its debut at Detroit in a few weeks. The car doesn't differ from the concept shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show in last September and inaugurates the crossover coupé segment. It comes with a new twin-turbocharged V8 petrol engine which has an output of 407bhp.
With the X6, BMW has gone wild and the coupé crossover will surprise company's aficionados by its roofline similar to the Ssangyong's Actyon's. From the B-pillar, the roofline plunges to the rear edn and despite a higher waistline, rear passenger's headroom might be limited. Longer but lower by 3.3 inches than the X5 model, the X6 will be roomy enough just for 4 people. The interior will feature a sporty feeling with a three spoke steering wheel and gearshift paddles as standard. The exterior paintwork comes with a choice of ten exterior colors, while eleven leather options and three trim options are available inside.
Oddly, BMW has decided to christen the range in a convoluted way. Forget the traditional scheme, the model name and the engine's displacement, as BMW has thaken keywords from its whole line up. The ranage will start with the X6 Xdrive35i for the petrol engine and the X6 Xdrive30d for the diesel unit, followed by the X6 Xdrive35d and topped by the X6 Xdrive50i which features a all-new twin-turbo V8 petrol engine. This is the second company's engine to come with twin-turbocharger architecture and is intended to replace the current 4.8-litre V8 petrol unit. A 4.4-litre unit, it pumps out a power of 407bhp and a torque of 443lb ft between 1750rpm and 4500rpm. It enables the heavy X6, 2190 kg to run the 0-62mph in 5.4s! Other engines are already known and featured on current models.
Future will say whether BMW was right or not by launching the first coupé crossover in an attempt to increase its sales. Land Rover will likely join the German car maker with the baby Land and other car makers will follow, but scepticism remains strong.
