More Info on the Forthcoming BMW X1

We already told you that 2009 is gonna be a bit special for BMW, so every single BMW report that will be released in the next 12 months will probably be more or less related to what we wrote in that article. And to prove our point, here are a few more details regarding the upcoming BMW X1 which, according to some (very lucky) Autobild editors who had the chance to test the xDrive30i, will arrive in late 2009 and will be exclusively addressed to European markets. However, the German carmaker does not exclude the possibility to launch the X1 in the North American market in the next few years.

First of all, the tested X1 boasted a 3.0-liter engine that developed a maximum output of 272 horsepower, but there’s no word of other engine choices that may reach the future lineup. However, BMW will produce four different models, namely the xDrive20i, xDrive20d, xDrive30i plus a hybrid version, which suggests that BMW may consider rolling out a number of different other engine options.

The transmission came under the form of a 6-speed automatic unit which, with the help of the aforementioned engine, provided a driving experience much like the one of the 1 Series and 3 Series, the same source wrote. In addition, a bunch of features of the new models are basically inspired by these two models, including the dashboard, the steering wheel and the navigation system that are quite similar to the ones brought by the 1 and 3 Series.

For those of you who missed the news, the first BMW X1 Concept was displayed in October at the Paris Auto Show, with the mass-production model expected to be showcased at the forthcoming Frankfurt Auto Show.