BMW will reveal a new SUV at the 2018 Detroit auto show — and it looks impressive
/By Matthew DeBoard - Business Insider
The new BMW X2. BMW
The X2 is BMW's latest crossover SUV.
It slots between the X1 and the X3.
Pricing wasn't announced, but the vehicle will make its official debut at the 2018 Detroit auto show and go on sale in the US in the spring.
Luxury SUVs are a booming business these days, and BMW doesn't want to be left out of a single segment.
The X1, X3, and X5 are already familiar to consumers, and the X6 is there for fans of oddball rides. A big X7 should be arriving in coming years. But for now, BMW is meeting the needs of SUV fans who want something that's larger than an X1, smaller than an X3, and sportier than both.
The X2 was first shown as a concept at the 2017 Detroit auto show; a year later, the real deal will hit the show floor in January 2018 and go on sales shortly next spring. Pricing wasn't yet announced, but the X1 starts at about $34,000, and the X3 starts at $42,500, so the X2 should land somewhere in between.
"The first-ever BMW X2 has a distinctive exterior design that combines the fast-moving body language and low-slung proportions of a coupe with the robust construction of a BMW X model," BMW said in a statement.
The crossover will have a 228-horsepower, twin-turbocharged four-cylinder engine under the hood, mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. BMW claimed a 0-60 mph time of 6.3 seconds.
"The BMW X2 represents an expression of modern and extrovert vehicle dynamics," Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior Vice President BMW Group Design, said in a statement, adding that the "standalone vehicle concept brings a new, fresh and exciting facet of the BMW to the compact segment."
The X2 joins the sporty M2 sedan in BMW's lineup, and an available M Sport upgrade gives overall performance a boost.
With the new SUV, BMW is trying to deliver the best of both worlds: SUV versatility and fun-to-drive character. That's proven by the X2's coupé styling, which looks more X6 than X3 or X5, capitalizing on an overall trend in the luxury crossover SUV segment.