BMW X4 UK first drive

The new BMW X4 - driven for the first time in the UK, and with a diesel engine upfront rather than the petrol lump previously made available to us.

Much about BMW’s latest we already know; this is an BMW X6 clone with its cheeks sucked in to fit the smaller platform currently found beneath the BMW X3. The body swap makes the car slightly longer and a fair bit lower, and sacrifices a modicum of practicality in the good name of SUV sporting pretension. 

Almost everything of consequence is carried over from the X3, although its higher status in the lineup means the two-wheel-drive sDrive18d entry-level version gets culled.

Instead, the X4’s are all-wheel-drive as standard and the range kicks off with the xDrive20d SE at £36,595 - a £3600 premium over the equivalent X3, which is consistent across the board. 

That four-cylinder car comes with a manual six-speed gearbox as standard, but expect BMW’s eight-speed auto to be a popular option (it’s standard with the 3.0-litre motor).

Trim choice splits the X4 into SE, xLine and M Sport, with the straight-six 255bhp 30d and 308bhp 35d filling out the oil burner-only engine selection. We drove the former, albeit in range-topping format. 

Aside from the cosmetic alterations, the X4 gets you a chassis tweak and the toys to go with it - including Performance Control, Variable Sport Steering, and, in the case of our test car, the even firmer M Sport suspension.

To help justify its positioning, the new model gets bigger 18-inch wheels as standard over the X3, as well as the convenience of a 40-20-40 split rear seat. Heated front seats, parking sensors, automatic tailgate and BMW’s Business Media pack are also among the default kit. 

As we suspected on our first glance overseas, the X4 is less likely to attract the teeth-gnashing consternation that greeted its big brother.

The X6 had the obnoxious on-road presence of a chromed whale carcass; smaller dimensions (i.e. the ability to fit snugly into a British parking space and the outside lane) make the new car’s still overtly posturing appearance more tolerable. 

Inside, the roofline’s coupe-ish swan-dive has a predictable impact. All 5’8” of yours truly fits fine in the back, but even with the ceiling emphatically scooped out, it appears likely that Autocar’s collection of six-footers can, at the very least, expect to have their hairline tickled.

It’s a similar story in the boot, where 50 litres of seat-up capacity - not to mention clearance for especially big, longer items - has been lost. That still leaves a hearty 500-litres of pleasingly high loading, square and flat floor space - but the inevitable practicality demerit stands. 

Upfront, of course, the driver wouldn’t recognise any compromise. Headroom here is massively plentiful, and although one wonders how BMW has managed to squeeze a clutch pedal into the cramped, offset area underfoot, the driving position is otherwise satisfying (aided by a 20mm drop in hip point compared to the X3).