BMW X3 (2010)

Here are the first official pictures of the new 2010 BMW X3. At first look, it's a shrunken X5 and looks smarter and larger than the outgoing, first generation X3 which never quite lived up to its promise.

It's all change with this new X3 in more ways than one. The new 2010 SUV will be built by BMW in Spartanburg, South Carolina, USA, and not by Magna in Graz, Austria. That should help fix the quality glitches that blighted the original X3,is it?

BMW X3 2010: an overview

There's a squarer aesthetic at play here. Just check out the horizontal lines marking out the front lights  and a long character line along the flanks further distinguishes X3 from X5. The new X3 is bigger than before, but now the latest X5 has swollen to accommodate three rows of seats, there remains clear water between BM's two large SUVs.

Munich says the new X3 has the lowest emissions of any 4wd model in this segment. Very zeitgeisty. How have they achieved low CO2? By fitting stop-start and an eight-speed transmission to lower the revs.

The line-up

The big seller – hogging 80% of sales – will be the X3 xDrive20d. It has a 2.0-liter aluminum four-cylinder, mustering 182bhp and 280lb ft from 1750-2750rpm – enough for 0-62mph in 8.5sec and 130mph. Yet thanks to stop-start, CO2 stands at 149g/km and average economy 50.4mpg.

BMW has beaten Land Rover to market with a stop-start auto; the eight-speed 2.0d is actually marginally cleaner, at 147g/km of CO2. All other figures are identical to the manual listed above. Other engines will be confirmed later.

This likely best-seller will cost £30,490 – £115 less than the outgoing X3. Standard equipment includes leather upholstery, twin-zone climate control.