A new build, a new GBMINI

Now that I don’t own a MINI after selling GP0203, and having owned my Q5 for over three years, it’s time for a new vehicle.
My primary desire these days is for interior comfort and a high level of technology – but after driving MINIs for nearly ten years, it’s nice to have a car with great steering and a responsive engine, too. I much prefer five door / hatchback designs over sedans and coupes too, so that limits my choice … And this is the bit where many GBMINI readers might close the browser – my shortlist consisted of vehicles similar to the Q5, that is “crossover” or small SUV styles!

I did lots of research, and had a burst of test drives recently. First up was the new Land Rover Evoque at MINI of Peabody sister dealership Land Rover Peabody – well, that didn’t go so well. The interior is nice, but feels a little cramped due to the low roofline – rear visibility is worse than a convertible MINI, but good rearview cameras help with that issue. The big negative of this car was what I hope is a fault on the particular vehicle I drove – when pulling on to highways, the car would reach about 30mph and then go no faster even while the revs slowly climbed. I’d have to release and re-apply the accelerator to get any more speed! Since this was the only tester, I couldn’t investigate if it was a fault (and I’ve heard nothing since from the dealership).

Next up was the Lexus RX350 (or it’s hybrid sister the RX450h); I was reluctant to return to the IRA dealership group where my Audi came from – but in truth they were Ok to deal with on this day.
The car was nicely equipped and comfortable, but I still wanted to test one more vehicle …

And so, on to another MINI Peabody sister, right next door – BMW of Peabody. Once again they had only 3 series BMWs in the showroom, and we had a long wait before we could see the X3 28i I wanted to test. Eventually we were able to drive it, and it was good – though perhaps not as good as the Lexus, and with a very noisy cabin interior at highways speeds (a combination of wind and road noise I think).
The salesman suggested we try the more powerful X3 35i; I couldn’t see why it would be any quieter inside, but agreed to try it – and WOW! It was so much more fun to drive. The bigger engine made a huge difference to it’s responsiveness, and made it a completely different vehicle. Oh, and the interior noise was much reduced, mysteriously but happily.

The newest BMWs now have some pretty sophisticated interior technology these days (something that previously has put me off them), and so I was able to spec and order a car that I think can offer most of the luxury of my Q5, a lot of the fun of my MINIs, and the technology that I desire day to day … and it’s being built right now:

 

I realize this is nothing like the type of car most MINI owners want – it’s certainly not going to take corners as well as a MINI, and it’s loaded with pricey comfort and technology much of which isn’t available at any price on a MINI, but I believe it’s exactly the right car for me.

So for the immediate future, this website will be BMW themed …