Family Fun with the BMW X3 xDrive30e

A couple weeks ago we had the opportunity to test drive the BMW X3 xDrive30e and we took advantage with a fun family day at the farm! As usual when we test things we have very different thoughts and feedback so here we go!

She Said:

When I first got into the drivers seat I sunk in and whispered “wow” under my breath! Guys this car is so luxurious . If you are a regular follower you know that we drive a Plug In Hybrid and I love it! We knew that driving a BMW was going to be a different experience and we were not wrong!

I felt incredibly safe in this car and I am sure that I could go on and on about why I loved it but thought I would point out a few of my top favs:

In dash speedometer was really helpful. Not only do I see how fast I am driving right in my dash glass, but if I am going over the speed limit it goes red.
Cordless charging for my cell phone
Sun and moon roof! I love having lots of sun light in the car when I am driving.
HUGE console screen that makes it easy to see exactly what I am looking for.
The interior night mood lighting is fun and makes driving at night a totally different experience.
Tonnes of space in the back for the kids and all of their “stuff”

It drove like a dream! I am a massive fan of plug in hybrids and I hope that they will become more popular with people, it would do such great things for the environment.

He Said:

I was fortunate to have a luxurious and sporty SAV (Sport Activity Vehile) PHEV (Plugin Hybrid EV) to drive this weekend. It was a pleasant change from the everyday PHEV that I drive almost daily. For the record this was my first time in the driver seat of a BMW and I must say it was love at first “open throttle”.

I won’t get into the full specs of the vehicle, you can find those specs out easily online. I will detail my experience of driving this vehicle compared to a typical ICE, PHEV and pure EV.

My First Experience Driving an X3

First this X3 is quick, fast and if you want to be extremely eco friendly – that too. Second, the complexity of this car is insane but the engineers have built this car so you don’t have to worry about battery charge or the setting to get the most benefit out of this vehicle. For example if you didn’t charge the battery overnight before starting your trip you will still be able to get going with some umph in hybrid mode with eBoost. The beauty is that while driving you can also charge the battery through regenerated braking and use of the gas engine as a generator. I was able to get the battery from 1% to 97% while driving home. Third this is a legit SAV not SUV. I would go out and call this a sports car (but it’s not). I’m sure some sport cars on the road would have hard time keeping up or event getting the jump on this PHEV. With the low end instant torque from the electric motor, unless the ICE you’re about the blow away at a green light has launch assist / control your sure to be first….to the next red light.

This is a great SAV for those that want sporty performance in a family hauler configuration. If you are a sports car person and reluctant to jump over to an SUV/SAV. This X3 PHEV will change your mind for sure. What I enjoyed were the three dynamic driver settings: sport, comfort and eco.

To see how this car drove in PHEV mode I put the vehicle in eco mode where it operated on battery until it was forced into hybrid mode. I noticed comfort mode was mainly hybrid function and was actually very comfortable. The steering, suspension and engine all seemed to have gotten better with this setting.

I fell in love with the sport mode though, why?

The instrument cluster goes from a calming blue to a “I pity the fool” red.
The engine although not a V6 this turbo 4 sounds AMAZING.
Added zip from the electric motor, sport mode whipped our heads back.

My only gripe, I did notice that I was unable to get android auto working with the system although there was an option for Apple Carplay. I did manage to connect via bluetooth and everything worked flawlessly. The audio system sounds solid, the bass is low and highs are tight, anything more and you’re looking for attention.

This is a great luxury SAV PHEV that allows you to have the ability to drive in pure EV mode then transition to hybrid and/or bring out the beast. All while still getting better MPG than ANY typical V6 or V8 of comparable performance.