 2010 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid. Click image to enlarge |
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2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6
I don’t like amusement park rides. One day, though, I went on Disney’s Tower of Terror, which lifts you up thirteen floors and then drops you straight down. The rush of adrenaline as it does is incredible. When it was over, I said to myself, “That made no sense, but it sure was a lot of fun.”
Which is, I think, the perfect way to describe the BMW X6 ActiveHybrid (which I’ll shorten to AH), which uses the properties of gasoline-electric propulsion more for flat-out fun than for its planet-saving properties. I’m guessing that the hybrid system will be far more palatable to buyers if or when it makes its way into more mainstream and lower-priced BMW models; for now, the few who pony up the X6 AH’s $99,900 starting price must pretty much feel like they’re driving concept show cars.
   2010 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid. Click image to enlarge |
The X6 is one of two hybrids currently available from the automaker, along with a version of the 7 Series sedan. They’re entirely different systems: the 7 Series sedan uses a smaller lithium-ion battery pack and an electric motor that’s used only to boost the gasoline engine. The car can’t run on electricity alone.
By contrast, the X6’s cargo floor conceals a large, heavy nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery; the larger X6 was chosen for the system because it could accommodate the battery without making a huge dent in carrying capacity. Under the hood is the twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 from the xDrive50i, producing 400 horsepower and 450 lb.-ft. of torque on its own. On this model, it’s combined with a two-mode hybrid system, jointly developed by BMW, Daimler and General Motors, which uses two electric motors and a gear set in the transmission that determines the power split – gasoline, electricity or a combination of the two. The transmission itself is a complicated item that acts like a seven-speed automatic. Able to run on its battery alone, the X6 AH uses electricity in one mode for taking off from a stop, and a second mode that pours on the power in conjunction with the gasoline engine when you stomp your foot to the floor.
The electric motors boost the combined power output to a maximum of 480 horsepower, and a bring-it-on torque rating of 575 lb.-ft. The conventional X6 xDrive50i upon which the hybrid is based is rated at a combined 14.3 L/100 km (20 mpg Imp), while the hybrid gets a published combined figure of 11.6 L/100 km (24 mpg Imp). As is common with hybrids, it’s the city figure that’s more impressive: 12.6 (22) for the hybrid, versus 17.1 (17) for the conventional 50i. As is also common, real-world seldom matches Natural Resources Canada’s numbers, and my combined driving over the week netted me 14.6 L/100 km (19 mpg Imp), naturally on premium fuel. Fuel economy is less of a goal here, and more of a byproduct.
 2010 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid. Click image to enlarge |
The price is a jaw-dropping premium of $19,000 over the starting tag for the V8-powered xDrive50i. Buyers in this range will undoubtedly be making their choice between the X6 hybrid and the high-performance X6 M, which puts out 555 horsepower and 500 lb.-ft. of torque, and has the same $99,900 starting price. Weight also plays a major part in performance: at 2,580 kg, the hybrid weighs 165 kg more than the M, and 190 kg more than the 50i. By BMW’s figures, you get zero to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds in the M, and 5.6 seconds in the portlier hybrid.
Porsche is also throwing a wrench into BMW’s plans: it has announced a hybrid version of its Cayenne, scheduled to go on sale this fall as a 2011 at a starting price of $80,800. Porsche has also said that its hybrid will run at higher speeds on its battery alone than the BMW version: let the high-end hybrid wars begin! Save for the upcoming Cayenne, hybrid SUV competitors like the Cadillac Escalade (the closest in price, at $94,775), Lexus RX 450h (nowhere near at $59,500) and Mercedes-Benz ML450 Hybrid (currently available only by lease in the U.S.) are tuned more for fuel economy than for the BMW’s damn-the-torpedoes go-fast attitude.
