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2018 BMW X2 Drops Hot Laps At The Nurburgring

2018 BMW X2 15 photos
Photo: screenshot from YouTube
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X1, X3, X4, X5, and X6. What wrong with this picture? The lack of an X2 is what’s wrong, but not for long. Currently in development, the compact-sized crossover is being fine-tuned on the most demanding racetrack of them all: the Nurburgring.
Previewed last fall by the Concept X2, what BMW refers to internally as the F39 is, at heart, an F48 X1 with different packaging. In other words, it’s a Sports Activity Coupe that rides on the UKL front-wheel-drive platform.

The small-ish X2 spied by Stateside Super Cars sounds as if it packs a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 and, for what it’s worth, the squealing tires aren’t too happy of being abused at the Green Hell. The pre-production prototype also exhibits a lot of body roll, which is an offshoot of heftiness.

Front-wheel-drive by nature, but available with xDrive, the F39 X2 will be offered with 1.5- and 2.0-liter powerplants. At the lower end of the spectrum, the sDrive16d and sDrive18i will do the talking. Over at the top, the xDrive25i and xDrive25d will have to make do. For the time being, BMW hasn’t slipped a single word on the possibility of a performance-oriented model.

The automaker’s silence is further backed by a codes list that stops at the 25d and 25i indicatives. As for transmission options, a six-speed stick shift and an Aisin-developed eight-speed automatic will have to suffice. On the subject of availability, the X2 is expected to be introduced this year as a 2018 model year, but nothing is known about seeing the F39 hit it with the U.S. public.

Following the X2, BMW will expand the X family with an all-new flagship in the form of the full-sized X7. The largest sport utility vehicle in the brand’s portfolio, word has it the X7 will be manufactured in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Here, BMW currently produces the X3, X4, X5, and X6.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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