Auto Test

Inner city isolationist

It stands there defiant and challenging in a much too small parking slot in the lovely inner city of Munich, the 555 horsepower BMW X6 M. This car does not have to be seen in motion to be recognized for what it is… decadence on big wheels.

This is a luxurious environment, the interior is spacious and the appointments leave little to be desired. The ‘M’ sports steering wheel is multi-functional and has agreeable grip.

As soon as the driver takes his seat the ‘sports activity coupé’ comes to life as if it were a personalized high-performance computer… 'memory function' ensures the proper positioning of seat and steering wheel. Egress from the cramped parking space is made easier thanks to the rear-facing camera with ‘top view’ feature… an extra which costs just 700 Euros… a sum which easily gets lost when the purchase price of the X6 M is considered. The most modest price tag reads 109 thousand Euros and the car we drove would have called for an investment of about 121 thousand. A touch of the starter button and the 4.4 litre bi-turbo V8 begins to growl with a sound which immediately promises aural wonders when the accelerator is given a really solid push. The driver sits in cosseted comfort in the ‘M’ sports seats. Gear changes are executed by the six-stage sports automatic transmission although this still lacks ‘driver profile’ settings. The X6 M can run in the normal ‘Drive’ mode or in ‘Sport’ mode, allowing for gear shifts to be either automatic, commanded by the gear-shifter or by the paddles on the ‘M’ multi-function steering-wheel. And so it is time to set the selector to the prestigious ‘M’ symbol on the dial and move off into the city traffic.

Plenty of room for manoeuvre… important for X6 M drivers.

Ruler of the parking lot

It is hardly surprising that the driver feels thoroughly spoiled by the pure luxury surrounding him… but he soon becomes aware that his safety is also being ensured. The 2.4 ton auto is crafted in aluminium, steel and leather and is… admittedly… not the easiest vehicle to manoeuvre in tight downtown streets and the search for a parking place can prove frustrating. But the compensation is the growing feeling that in a car which is 4.876 metres long and 1.195 metres wide the driver could if he were so minded easily squash anything that might hinder his progress. It is also a delight to realize that the motorization is fully equal to the task of moving this mass of automobile and that there is no sensation of ponderousness. Granted the precision and directness of the steering fails to match that of sports models such as the M3, but for an SUV model it is impressive and far superior to the qualities of almost all class rivals.

‘Chunky’ is hardly adequate to describe this rear end. The view toward the rear is so limited that a camera is an imperative… for the sake of others.

The X6 M is not entirely lacking in practicality… there is a roomy interior and decent cargo carrying capacity. But that ‘top view’ camera mentioned earlier really needs to be on board. Otherwise one hesitates to imagine what could be going on behind… or even under… this truly massive rear end with its tiny back window… a crowd of revolting students… a pack of timid fawns… two Artega GT speedsters one on top of the other… all doomed unless the rear-view camera is on board! Another nice feature on the car we tested was the heads-up display which allows the driver to gaze resolutely ahead but at the same time be informed of speed restrictions, the status of various electric assistant systems and whether his seat-belt is fastened or not.

The 10 and 11x20 ‘M’ rims give the X6 M a solid footing.

Grassroots charmer

When the city has been left behind things begin to become more dynamic. The Bavarian capital has a much envied hinterland with winding roads which are predestined as the ideal playground for a sports car hidden in a two-and-a-half ton carosserie… although the 100 kilometres an hour speed limit has a spoil sport effect. The X6 M has vehement acceleration which results in this limit being reached from a standing start on perfectly normal roads in just 4.9 seconds. This time could be improved by 0.2 or 0.3 seconds on race track asphalt and with the right rubber mixture on the 10 and 11x20 ‘M’ rims. With this kind of performance capability it stands to reason that the demands made of the brakes will be considerable. But the ‘M Compound’ stoppers are equal to the task and bring the giant vehicle to a stop from 100 kilometres an hour in a mere 33.4 metres. After negotiating the first few tight corners the adequacy of the steering is fully confirmed… crisp, direct and sporty. Making allowances for the fact that this is a big, brutal SUV hitting the corners is a lot of fun.

The sports activity coupé weighs 2.4 tons but for an SUV it is surprisingly spry, also because there are electronics on board to help.

It must be said that in this regard there is electronic assistance to make the task easier. Without the anti-sway system the feeling of confidence in tight bends would be much reduced. The power delivery of the V8 is typical BMW and at the same time still impressive… with no let up at any given level of RPMs. Thanks to the all-wheel-drive which can deliver power to the front wheels when needed there is little chance of experiencing understeer episodes… unless the corner is simply far to tight. Motorization, suspension and steering can all be termed fantastic. It is the unvarnished truth to say that the 2.4 ton BMW behaves like an oversized sports car with a higher than usual driver’s seat. Perhaps the only downside… the computer on board is telling the driver that the stated 13.9 litres of fuel needed to make a journey of a hundred miles will certainly not prove sufficient in practice… and wait until the X6 M hits the autobahn.

There are bragging rights when the ‘Driver’s Package’ is included. This enables the X6 M to reach 276.2 kilometres an hour. But the fuel consumption is almost as breathtaking as the speed.

Oil industry collaborator

It must be noted that the car we tested came with the M ‘Driver’s Package'… meaning a top speed capability of 275 kilometres an hour. Fine… out into the fast lane and the accelerator to the floor. What happens then is hard to put into words… The heads-up-display has trouble keeping the data fresh when after just 17 seconds the X6 reaches 200 kilometres an hour. Other traffic seems to vacate the overtaking lane as soon as the X6 appears on the most distant rearward horizon. But this distance is, of course, almost insignificant when 2.4 tons of car is approaching at 276.2 kilometres an hour. Anyone looking for fast lane dominance need look no further than the X6 M. The behaviour of this sports activity coupé at speeds above 250 kilometres an hour is remarkably stable and confident, even on a long curving stretch of autobahn. It is at the filling station that there comes a sobering moment… on average our X6 M needed almost 25 litres of Super Plus per hundred kilometres driven… and that is about 11 litres more than the manufacturer claims. Of course it must be said that EU norm calculations do not take into account driving exploits at or above 250 kilometres an hour. Nevertheless the factory claim seems to us to be utopian with 16 litres being required even when the car is driven without thrilling excesses.

Black is black… the ‘M’ skirts differentiate the X6 M from the series version.

Ecological tyrant

The turbo giant remains indubitably the unapologetic dictator… in its class the X6 M is, even after two years, untroubled by any contender for its dominant position. The driving dynamics, engine, brakes, its luxury gimmicks and, above all, the frank ‘look-at-me’ qualities as it marches by make it since its introduction in 2009 the unthreatened tyrant in the luxury SUV sector. In the meantime there is, of course, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S contemplating a coup d’état and a move of the seat of power from to Zuffenhausen. Perhaps the ‘M’ engineers need to be watchful!

The car we drove would have called for an investment of about 121 thousand. It is also a politically incorrect climate killer. And driving it brought a smile of pure joy!

When it comes to matters financial the BMW X6 M is a calculating extortionist, whether in regard to vehicle taxation, insurance premiums, energy consumption, maintenance as well as acquisition costs. With emissions of 325 grams of CO2 it is also a climate killer. But what cannot be denied is the this monster from Munich is fearless in its contempt for practicality and seems to revel in its lack of political correctness. This is an automobile which wallows happily in its intrinsic decadence and keeps its promise of driving pleasure of the most brutal… if somewhat synthetic… kind. The many electronic assistants on board might seem at odds with the purism many associate with ‘M’ models. But pedal-to-the-metal fetishists and SUV fans with the inclination to heavy metal… literally… will have all the kicks they crave with this automobile. Love it? Drive it! Hate it? Live with it… it’s not going away.