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BMW X6 2020 bound for Australia this year

 

BMW are widely credited with starting the SUV-coupe crossover genre in 2008. The first X6 was unveiled eleven years ago, and today it’s time to say hello to the third generation of the car. The 2020 BMW X6 retains the badge’s close ties with the underlying X5 while packing a far more rakish roofline. 

The rear end styling is the biggest change to an observer over the outgoing F16 generation, with a deck lid that more closely resembles that of the new X4. The large, horizontal tail lamps won’t be to everybody’s taste, but clearly, this genre is a popular one for those who do not like wagon-bodied SUVs.

That grille? It can be optionally illuminated now.

A familiar range of engines will be offered on the X6, largely mirroring the powertrain offer on the X5. In Australia these are likely to include two three-litre inline six-cylinder diesels first. The xDrive30d makes 195kW/620Nm with the assistance of a single turbocharger. The M50d, meanwhile, ups the induction count to four turbos and kicks out a pretty astonishing 294kW/760Nm. 

The only petrol engine announced as yet for the X6 globally is a 4.4-litre V8. Badged as the xDrive50i, this unit produces 390kW/750Nm. An elegant sufficiency, to be sure, but we can be fairly certain that a full-fat X6 M, utilising the same underlying engine but with over 400kW of power, will eventuate later.

The interior is largely identical to that in the wagon-bodied X5.

Inside, the design is resemblant of the current G05 X5. This is the latest BMW interior design language, featuring a more integrated 12.3-inch touchscreen running the seventh-generation of the brand’s iDrive software. There’s a second twelve-inch display in front of the driver. Optional interior fittings will include a geometric, glass gear shifter, and a pricey Bowers and Wilkins Diamond stereo.

The new X6 will arrive in Australia before the end of 2019.

Large and in charge: then new X6.