Just bought an F48 xDrive20i XLine

So, here goes....

First impressions are very good. It arrived on Wednesday evening courtesy of my uncle who ferried it down from Edinburgh. A shade under 400miles, he arrived reasonably fresh and with an average of 42.5mpg for the trip. Not too bad for the 190bhp petrol engine with 8spd auto. In terms of aesthetics, I think the design is spot on and apes the F25 X3. In our colour scheme with Mediterranean Blue metallic and oyster leather, I really think it looks the part - particularly with the satin aluminium effect trim of the XLine pack.

Sitting behind the wheel, it feels a bit like a tardis. A low dash and big windscreen makes for a spacious feel; helped more by the oyster headlining and door pillars which are a change to the usual anthracite headlining you find in cars - especially sport editions. I like it. The cabin feels spacious and uncluttered. The centre console appears a little low, with the gearshift sprouting from the central console like something from years gone by, when you compare with current BMWs higher up the range and I guess this is a symbol of the F48 being based upon the MINI platform. It feels more accentuated as the Porsche Centre console is very high and almost wrap around.

The engine is a 2 litre 4-pot, petrol with an 8spd auto. From inside it’s very refined. But from outside sounds a bit diesel-y. It’s very smooth though and the torque is impressively useful; it gains speed smoothly and efficiently and makes for decent progress in both comfort and sport maps. The latter being usefully more direct. The throttle feels slow compared with the Macan but it suits the car and makes for relaxed progress. Steering is direct and whilst there is some lean in the chassis when cornering, it feels nailed down and corners very effectively, if not missing some feedback from the steering wheel. When pressing on, you can definitely feel the MINI platform is FWD biased, even in the Xdrive - whereas my E70 felt like a rear driven car, this has torque steer. Not much of it, but it’s definitely there.

I’ve only driven it about 50miles in total, but I’m very impressed. I’ve been averaging 35mpg (or thereabouts). It’s quite a fun little car and I’ve taken it in preference to the Porsche on a couple of occasions; partly for the novelty value and partly because it’s outside the house and there, whilst the Macan lives in the garage. Whether that continues to be the case, who knows but it’s certainly more frugal which could make more sense on the shorter trips.

Bad points - not many. The torque steer is definitely a bit annoying, but not the end of the world. There is a lot of road noise at 60-70mph. It’s running on 18” non RFT but the tyres are getting on a bit, so will look into seeing if there’s a quieter OE * tyre to replace them with when the time comes. Otherwise, for a four year old car, she’s in great nick. Has a small pin prick dent in the drivers door, which could’ve been picked up in the A1 services this week, but otherwise in good condition. She’s only done 15k miles with one owner from new, so a nice, well looked after example. The rear hasn’t even been sat in I’d wager and probably only the driver up front. I’ve bought a boot liner to keep it looking fresh back there and car seat covers for the kids seats.

Most important of all - the lady who bought her is delighted with it. My girlfriend loves it and it fulfils the brief for her. Compact, but big enough for a family and all their accoutrements. Cool enough to be seen knocking around in and the right mix of frugal and sporty to have a bit of fun driving. Can see why they’ve sold so many!

Watch this space - I’ll update with more insights as we get to know her. But @GunRunner - I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. ;)

 

So after reading all that back and also @edthefed ’s review too, I’d say we’re on the same page!

 

A quick update:

The X1 hasn’t done a huge amount of mileage since we bought it, but each drive is enjoyable, in a kind of non-exciting / practical kind of way.

We treated the car to a new set of winter wheels given we live in a fairly rural area and still both very much convinced of the practicality/safety of running winter rubber. I sourced the wheels through Alloy Wheels Direct; got to choose the style of alloys (all OEM) and then match with whatever the personal choice of tyres are, add TPMS and/or wheel bolts and centre caps. All arrived safely packaged up and arrived courtesy of UPS earlier this week (10 days after ordering). We went for style 385 (17”) shod with Continental Winter Contact TS830P* non RFT since I’ve had really good experiences with the Conti’s on my previous F11.

After fitting today, I took the car for a quick run into town. Initially a bit squidgy but once the release agent was worn off, they were really grippy and A LOT quieter than the 18” Bridgestone Turanza summer tyres which it came on. Incidentally whilst swapping the wheels over I noticed the summers are the original fitment and now nearly 4yrs old. Will have to give some consideration to changing them next year potentially even though they’ve only done 16k miles, but are beginning to show some age related wear around the outside of the tread blocks.

Anyway, some before and after - bearing in mind that the after shot is just after it’s been jacked up and is sitting very high. It righted itself once I drove off. I’m really pleased with the choice of wheels - unusually for winters, the car isn’t left looking “cheap” and I think suit it very well.

 

So following my most recent post and little trip out in the X1 after fitting the winter tyres and the discs being a bit rusty and loud, I resolved to use it a bit more regularly and have done 4 trips into Saffron Walden this week to pick up supplies. It’s only a ten mile round trip but enough to clean up the brakes, turn the wheels and get the engine warm. Interestingly it’s not massively more efficient than the Macan over such a short trip (28mpg vs 21mpg) but nice to get it run out and used.

A few things I’ve noticed:

- it performs this local trip perfectly and seems to be the ideal use for the vehicle. A nice nippy little thing; nice size and comfy;
- LED headlights are super! The xenon & LED mix on the Macan are good but these are different league. I can only imagine how good the laser lights are on the more premium vehicles. If it weren’t for the performance/fun deficit, I’d be using the X1 exclusively for night driving on the rural roads around here;
- I’ve found a temperature gauge in the instrument cluster menu which I thought was a nice touch. I remember the frustration of countless BMWs since the E60 which havent had temp gauges. Even though it’s just coolant, it’s a nice touch.



Overall, still a lovely little car - sports seats are comfy, engine is peppy, gearbox is not quite as smooth as a ZF but certainly no dog and I’ve resolved to use the car a lot more for shopping trips and perhaps even picking up my daughter. Although it will depend on how quiet the roads are and what condition they’re in since they’re an absolute hoot and best driven in the Macan!

Now just ticked over 16500miles and averaging 32.3mpg.

 

Bit of an update here since we’ve been using the car a fair bit of late. It’s only done about 2.5k since we bought it 10months ago but I’m getting to like it the more I drive it.

It’s still sitting on its winter wheels since the temps even down here in N Essex have been very low in the mornings with frosts even up to this week. I’ll potentially swap onto summers this weekend but I’ve been really impressed with the conti’s (again). It’s much quieter, more refined and the handling is super even on quite warm days.

The reason for the additional use has been a mixture of the Cayenne being in the garage for a week and also the holiday we’re currently on. We’re away in the Motorhome for the week. We wouldn’t normally take a car with us as well but because we had to drop my daughter back at school after the weekend with us, we decided to bring a car with us be a bit more mobile.

So far with the backwards and forwards on the school run, trips out and sight seeing, we’ve put on 600miles. And they’ve been pretty enjoyable ones too. The petrol engine really is a sweet bit of kit - it’s not hugely refined like an I6 but it’s certainly a lot quieter than the equivalent diesel. It’s got a good pickup, torquey and decent midrange punch even if it isn’t great to rev out and runs out of puff about 5k rpm. But it’s pretty economical - over the time we’ve had it, we’re averaging 33.4mpg and up here in Norfolk I’ve average between 44-51mpg.

The sports seats are very comfy and the handling is supple but direct and effective....it’s pretty good fun to get a wriggle on with.

As a family wagon it’s ok. It works quite well with the two of us and our baby son but you have to be creative on how to pack with the pram in the boot. As a runaround with two kids on board it just works for a day trip and no further clobber. It would probably work really well as an only car for a family whose kids are between 5-10. Plenty of cabin space but boot is a little on the small size for lots of kiddy (baby) related stuff.

However it’s been the perfect car for this trip and really opened my eyes as to how good it is. It’s not naturally the car I go for when I have the choice. The Porsche key always gets first dibs but the X1 is a great car in its own right. As I said, for this trip it’s been great for the mpg, its size when parking up at the likes of Cromer, Sheringham & Holt. Without being too showy and doesn’t stand out like the Cayenne does.

All in all, we’re very pleased with the little thing and wouldn’t hesitate in recommending it to anyone who needs a compact family car.

 

So a quick update, having passed its MOT this morning. It's covered just shy of 3k miles in our ownership. It spent the first few months during lockdown barely moving, except for a few local runs just to keep it moving. However, as things have eased and since having our new arrival in Nov, my other half is very regularly pottering around in the X1 given she doesn't like driving the Cayenne (too big). So far, no regrets from her whatsoever - she loves the size and look of it and is still delighted with her purchase 12 months later.

In terms of a buy, it's been a pretty good one. Like most cars currently, the value has increased and we are getting quotes from both WBAC & Motorway offering around £19k for it (against £20.5k we paid for it). So running cost-wise, we're seeing a little over £220 per month incl. depreciation, fuel (c. £45pcm), insurance & VED. Not bad at all and just what you want from the second runaround.

A few costs do have to be absorbed though. We bought a set of brand new OEM alloys & winter tyres last year £1.5k, I've just paid the £490 for BMW Extended Warranty for the coming year (w/£100 excess), MOT cost and forthcoming insurance. Unfortunately, we do have to add in at some point a set of new tyres. I had noticed there was some light cracking to the NS tyres (potentially UV damage) and the MOT flagged the tyre depths coming up to 3mm, so we'll see if we can eek out the summer with them and get a new set once we're off the winters next Spring.

Otherwise I've got nothing but praise for the little X1. It's a lovely drive, as commented on in my last update after a few hundred miles in Norfolk. The BMW technology is super and still superior to what I have in the Cayenne and the 2litre engine is peppy enough to be both enjoyable and useful. We're averaging 34mpg, which I don't think is too bad.

Overall, super little car and I can see it being with us for a long time (mainly because Mrs Spuff owns it and doesn't have the same need for regular changes as me!)

 

A quick update:

X1 has been proving a stellar companion for my Partner and the family. The latter part of her Maternity leave saw her pick up the mileage a fair bit with weekly swimming lessons a 50mile round trip away, plus regular trips to Stansted to pick up family and now the twice daily 20mile round trip to do drop offs and pick ups at Nursery. The car is now sitting on just shy of 21k miles.....still low mileage and only 4.5k in 18months.....versus the 4k I’ve done in my X5 in 4.5months!

Anyhow, I’m writing this from Baron’s Stansted where I’m waiting for the vehicle to have its brake fluid changed. I’ve been here 1.5hrs and the car has been in the service bay for an hour so I’m hoping I’ll be gone soon. I’m not expecting any surprises (famous last words). Car has been running exceptionally well, apart from a flat battery 4wks ago when the weather first cooled down. We realised the battery was 5yrs old and given the low mileage overall plus very short trips to nursery and back, we’ve taken to plugging it in to the CTEK every weekend and so far it seems to be ok since. Let’s see how it goes over the summer....I’d hope to eek out another year or so from it if we look after it.

Otherwise all good. Can’t see my Partner replacing it with anything other than the same anytime soon. Although she loves ease of driving my X5 (the responsiveness of the drivetrain and light electric steering makes hers feel very old fashioned and hard work), she prefers the size of hers for nipping into Waitrose car park and wherever she lands in town. I have to confess, I agree. Unless the family grows or there’s an effective EV equivalent at the right price point, then we’ll have the X1 for a while to come.

It’s averaging 33mpg, costs peanuts in tax (£165-ish), BMW warranty at £500 and so far zero depreciation. What’s not to like?

UPDATE : I can happily confirm that I was out of the dealership within 2hrs 10mins of arriving. X1 got a clean bill of health at the Health Check, new brake fluid and antibacterial treatment for the aircon. £111 in total and pleased with the service.