All-New BMW X3 Launched At Rs 49.99 Lakh

BMW India has launched the all-new X3 SUV in India, a couple of months after it was officially showcased as the 2018 Auto Expo. Priced from Rs 49.99 lakh, ex-showroom India, the new X3 goes up against competition such as the Mercedes-Benz GLC, Audi Q5, Volvo XC60 and the Lexus NX300h.

BMW has only launched the X3 with diesel power in India, for now, the company has confirmed that it will launch petrol-powered variants of the SUV later in the year. The two variants on sale are the xDrive 20d Expedition which costs Rs 49.99 lakh and the xDrive 20d Luxury Line which costs Rs 56.70 lakh. This is the first time that any BMW SUV (or SAV as they call it) as been launched with the ‘Luxury Line’ trim in India. The BMW X3 is locally assembled at the company’s plant near Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

The BMW X3 is only available with a single diesel engine - a 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder, turbocharged engine developing 190PS @ 4,000rpm and 400Nm @ 1,750-2,500rpm. The engine sends power through an 8-speed automatic transmission to an intelligent AWD system. BMW claims the X3 can do the 0-100kmph run in 8-seconds, and also claims it has a fuel-efficiency of 16.04kmpl. Though the X3 has grown in size, it is 55kg lighter than before which has improved performance and efficiency.

The new X3 looks like a smaller X5, with the Luxury Line variant getting features like gloss black and chrome trim on the grille, two-tone body cladding, adaptive LED headlamps (Expedition gets standard LEDs), LED fog lamps and 19-inch alloy wheels (Expedition gets 18-inch units).

BMW has gone the whole hog with the features list on the X3, especially with the Luxury Line trim. It gets the BMW Display key which gets a touchscreen display through which certain features of the SUV can be controlled, paddle shifters behind the steering wheel, a 10.25-inch infotainment touchscreen with Apple CarPlay connectivity and touch-sensitive iDrive controller, 16-speaker 600W Harman Kardon surround sound system, a fully digital 12.3-inch instrument cluster, parking assistant, wireless charging, electric folding rear seats etc.

The standard feature list is extensive too, but the X3 Expedition misses out on the digital instrument cluster, a rearview camera and leather seats. It does get a panoramic sunroof, 6-colour ambient lighting, an electric tailgate, 3-zone climate control, 40:20:40 rear seats and 8-airbags.

Get latest updates on
the automobile community

Login Now

The BMW X3 has a tough fight on its hands and we will be putting the competition against each other to see which one is better. Stay tuned to ZigWheels for a comprehensive comparison.