A little love for the X3

Kate’s whip of choice has been getting pummeled in magazine reviews of late. The X3 has been pitted against the current crop of tiny luxury SUVs in TopGear, Car and Automobile (though, really both Car and Automobile employed the same guy – Georg Kacher – to write their comparisons.) Everyone has been calling it harsh, austere, rough, unpolished and lethargic. Well, perhaps – but only when you compare it to cars designed as 2009 models. Remember, everyone, the X3 was a 2004 machine and things, as they do, change over five years. Yes, the Audi Q5 or Volvo XC60 are more refined beasts but they should be. The fact that the X3 is still a contender at all shows that BMW created a winner when it staked a claim to the ground these baby utes drive upon. Give the old girl some slack! The only complaint about Kate’s 3.0i spec 2005 I have is that it’s a bit neurotic in its character. You’d expect that from a BMW though right?

So, I was quite pleased to find that Car & Driver has rehashed the comparison test for American readers and has found that the BMW X3, while not the winner, is deserving of the #2 spot in its opinion. RESPECT.