BMW X3 review

Our first drives are of the two mild-hybrids, so we'll update this review when we meet the PHEV 30e and diesel 20d.

That 2.0-litre petrol engine is a bit of a mixed bag. Propelling 1.95 tonnes of SUV and driver is quite an effort for it. With a small amount of electrical assistance, total output is 205bhp. The main gain from the hybrid, mind, is torque. Or rather the instant provision thereof.

Net result: the engine feels lag-free, because from low revs the motor gives a pulse of gumption before the turbocharger wakes up and takes over. Then as revs rise the power develops in what feels like an even upward line. So your pedal inputs get the exact answers you were expecting.

Unfortunately inspiration, like sheer power, is in short supply: it's smooth enough but its tone is a flat drone and it gets a bit noisy when you're working it.

What else do I need to know?

The steering - like the throttle - is even-handed, accurate and predictable, so you can conduct it on a smooth course. That's satisfying in itself, and also an antidote to travel sickness, as is the well-damped ride.

In most drive modes (not sport) the hybrid system automatically regenerates when you lift off while coming to a junction or the car in front slows, as if you'd downshifted. It feels quite natural. Otherwise, when you lift off the car just coasts.

That all sounds a bit worthy for a BMW. Is the M50 any fun?

Well you've got a proper and delicious Bavarian straight-six for a start, so the sounds are better all the way to the red. It comes with speaker-fed IconicSounds augmentation too but turn that off: it's on the histrionic side. But 393bhp and 428lb ft of torque aren't figures to be sniffed at, even in a two-tonner, so the 0-62mph is 4.6 seconds and it's a member of the 155mph club. The eight-speed auto gearbox is slick too, and you can take control yourself with large, rubberised paddles mounted behind the wheel.

The M50's body, suspension and steering are locally strengthened in search of more precision. Which helps. So does the e-diff, sending controlled torque between the rear wheels. It's more of an engaging thing to hustle round bends, though in no way a sports car. It favours a bit of safe understeer, lacks real feel through the chunky steering wheel and still offers a bit of body roll.

Its fundamental ride is another notch firmer, but the adaptive dampers let you tailor it to your mood somewhat. Sport is too firm for potted UK roads, but otherwise it's well-damped and isn't thrown off by hefty 21in wheels.

Does it guzzle fuel?

The entry-level petrol engine is reasonably efficient if you don't flog it, with a WLTP consumption of 40.9mpg, meaning 157g/km. The M50 is 36.7mpg officially, but that in no way corresponds to our experience. Maybe, just maybe, we don't drive 400bhp SUVs in the same way as WLTP inspectors are obliged to.