X3 in the Market

The compact luxury crossover segment has undergone a revolution since the first-generation X3 debuted. Both the Q5 and GLK-Class have become popular sellers, while X3 sales have lagged behind.

The redesigned X3 puts BMW in position to retake some of the market thanks to its more forgiving ride. Despite some shortcomings, it's still luxurious enough to cut it in this segment, and its more competitive starting price that's about $2,000 less than the 2010 X3 won't hurt, either.

    See also:

    Side View
    The concept Side View provides an early look at cross traffic at blind driveways and intersections. Road users concealed by obstacles to the left and right of the vehicle can only be detected r ...

    Timeshift
    Approx. one hour of the program being broadcast on the channel currently being listened to is stored in a buffer. Prerequisite: the signal must be available. The stored audio track can be playe ...

    Interior
    Even though it's relatively unchanged for 2009, the X3's interior remains very upscale for this segment. My test car's dark brown leather upholstery and black dashboard made for an especially clas ...