BMW X2 xDrive28i First Drive: The Finest Compact SUV Architecture, Now Available As A BMW

X2 is a less extreme version of BMW’s four-door coupé CUV design themes, not a bolt-upright SUV design. X2 is compact CUV all sexed up.

Chasing a well-versed local over a mountain road rates among my favorite activities when traveling through unfamiliar territory. Saddled up in the latest addition to BMW’s burgeoning SUV/CUV family, the X2 xDrive28i, I let a fast-paced local by on the climb out of Rancho Mirage traffic and away from the BMW Performance Driving School at Thermal Club. Calibration set to SPORT, X2 maintained a quick pace with easy style, as I dogged the local all the way to the snow line, never letting him out of sight. Several times I let him open a gap then ran him down like a rabbit.

At the snowline. X2 is a satisfying drive over a mountain. Yet it toddles through traffic unperturbed.

X2 is drawn from the same genetic soup as my favorite tiny CUV, the MINI Countryman S, but with the BMW badge comes the same turbo engine, 8-speed gearbox and instant-on part-time all-wheel drive system of the highest-performing version of Countryman, the John Cooper Works. BMW Group’s “TwinPower” 4-cylinder rates among the very best of contemporary turbo engines: eerily smooth, amazingly quiet, and with such a gusher of torque that driving X2 quickly is effortless, child’s play.

BMW X2 models specified with M Sport suspension ride 0.4 inches lower compared to the standard car. With the optional Dynamic Damper Control, X2’s suspension can be adjusted even more precisely to better suit individual preferences. It would be greatly enjoyed on the sort of roads one finds in rural California.

With 258 lb. ft. between 1450 and 4500 rpm, the rev range used most often in daily driving, X2 is never at a loss for oomph. For perspective, that’s more torque than most of the legendary straight six engines that catapulted BMW out of the niche sport sedan enclave and into social icon status in the 1980s and ‘90s. Placed in the compact body architecture of X2 and its various MINI and BMW cousins, this engine is a pure delight.

X2 flatscreen showing use of torque. Contemporary turbo engines and variable cam timing have simply erased the days of narrow peaks of torque and horsepower, or the days when torque became peaky and thin to gain more horsepower. Now you can have both, have it all. Maximum torque is available over a 3000-rpm range. Whoooosh.

Riding that bubble of turbo torque up the mountain, X2 glided with style through bowled mountain corners, steering light but accurate, suspension tracking brilliantly, up on the balls of its feet. Stopped at the snowline after my chase up the mountain, working through menus for the big flatscreen, I found digital dials that show use of torque and horsepower. Seeing the torque dial sweep rapidly and peg maximum is satisfying, the little engine steaming along, reinforcing positive feelings about the car and one’s driving.

Seating position and human factors are typically German, meaning excellent.

Yet on the way to and from the mountain road, through heavy Rancho Mirage and Palm Desert traffic, X2 toddled along, docile and relaxed. Even in its nearly highest evolution, the TwinPower engine is never peaky or temperamental. Amazing what engineers can accomplish tweaking computer script if the fundamental mechanical pieces are of sound design. The jump from a 189-horsepower Countryman S motor to 228-horsepower X2 is reminiscent of the jump in performance between a standard Rolls-Royce Ghost and a Black Badge Ghost. Speaks to the inherent strength and qualities of the powertrain, thoughtfulness of the engineering.

C-pillar not only has the signature Hofmeister kink, but also wears a BMW roundel, a design signature that hearkens to BMW coupes of the 1970s like the famous 3.0 CSL.

I found X2 satisfying and very well sorted in SPORT setting—I would have gladly driven it home to Los Angeles—and assume that SPORT will be more than enough for most buyers. Suspension architecture is so well considered that this relatively small vehicle ably handles a very tall set of wheels and tires. X2 has a fine ride for a compact vehicle.

Unlike the very upright MINI Countryman greenhouse, X2 has a more steeply raked windshield and shorter greenhouse. Open the sunscreen of the panoramic roof and the world opens in spectacular fashion.

But for those who want more there is an M Sport suspension available with stiffer springing and more aggressive damper tuning. As BMW slices ever thinner wedges of the market, they run into an issue I once faced with colleagues noodling about small performance cars to develop for the European market: for the cost of the M Sport goodies, the price rises enough that a potential buyer might consider stepping up to a larger BMW, forsaking the final layer of sporting ability. The very tightly spaced rungs of a ladder. Funny to see that dynamic now occurring in the U.S. market, as 21st Century computer aided design allows one “toolkit” to become a half-dozen vehicles with surprisingly different character.

Tossing a few snowballs.

If I must guess, the heart of X2 sales will be the standard car optioned with the bigger flatscreen and CarPlay, a few other electronic goodies and convenience packages (who doesn’t love heated seats?), and leather. I’d further guess the M Sport suspension will be most popular in places like my native California where a daily vehicle that’s easy to maneuver in a downtown parking garage is cherished, but one also enjoys those stolen moments of pleasure shooting up a curved freeway onramp.

BMW has established its West Coast Performance Driving School at Thermal Club, just outside Palm Springs. Unlike the old race tracks of my youth, which were always out in primitive rural areas, state of the art “country clubs” like Thermal may be the future of performance driving.

X2 may share underbody and suspension architecture with X1 and the bigger MINIs, but its four-door coupé bodywork brings a completely different feel and sensation—X2 wears a suit, tie and cufflinks from the BMW tailor shop. Again, unique character and presence drawn out of a versatile “engineering toolkit.” The interior is roomy, with materials quality equivalent to the lower reaches of the BMW lineup. If one seeks a posher X2, BMW-grade leather is available. Interior design is timeless, with the clean, sweeping surfaces that define BMW. Logic of switches, dials and controls is exceptional as one expects from good German industrial design. Invest 10 minutes toying with flatscreen menus and the basics are fully grasped. I’m six three and was comfortable in both front and rear seats. The four-door coupé roofline brings a steeply swept windshield, and sleeker greenhouse. I tumbled into and out of the vehicle with no extreme head-ducking required. Particularly with the panoramic roof’s sunshade retracted, the cabin is airy, but this is a less extreme version of BMW’s four-door coupé CUV design themes, not a bolt-upright, boxy SUV design. X2 is CUV all sexed up.

Clean, crisp design. Interior will age well.

Just as almost every Ferrari sold in the U.S. now comes with the optional and considerably proportioned Ferrari shield badges on the front fenders—everyone you pass will know you have a Ferrari—X2 wears the BMW roundel on its C-pillars, a quote from BMW coupes of the early 1970s, like the legendary 3.0 CSL that made my heart pound as a boy. As BMW brings its materials and design quality, superior dynamics, and excellent engineering to the burgeoning compact luxury market, it’s important that X2 wear the BMW imprimatur, ensuring cachet, ensuring strong social imagery. For some, X2 may end up serving as a Daddiewagen or Mommiewagen, but it’s still a BMW.