- the 2020 bmw x4 m and x3 m competition both achieved a 3.3-second zero-to-60-mph time in car and driver testing.
- the pair of m suvs also raced to the quarter-mile in 11.6 seconds at 119 mph.
- the competition package adds an extra 30 horsepower to their twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-sixes.
as the demand for suvs continues to grow, so too does the proliferation of high-performance sport-utes. as a result, the performance of these top-dog sport utility vehicles keeps climbing. they're even beginning to rival some of the best performance cars available today. now, the latest pair from bmw have joined the list of the fastest suvs we've ever tested.
in our testing, the x4 m and x3 m, both equipped with m’s competition package, rocketed their way to 60 mph in 3.3 seconds. that time makes the pair a tenth of a second quicker than the last performance-package-equipped porsche macan turbo we tested, although that wasn't the refreshed 2020 model, which gets more power. the competing bmws were a tenth of a second shy of the times posted by the quickest alfa romeo stelvio quadrifoglio and the mercedes-amg glc63 s coupe. they did, however, outdo the stelvio quadrifoglio in the quarter-mile, reaching the distance in 11.6 seconds at 119 mph—a tenth of a second quicker and 2 mph faster than the italian suv.
both the x4 m and x3 m competition weigh the same as the base m versions, although, when equipped with the competition package, the s58 twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six produces 503 horsepower compared to 473. the turbo 3.0-liter is the most powerful roadgoing six-cylinder engine that bmw has ever made, and it will power the next-generation m3 and m4 models.
speaking of the m3, the two suvs were six-tenths of a second faster than the last one we tested, which was equipped with the competition package as well as a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. in the suvs, all 503 horses are sent to the road through an eight-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel-drive system, the same setup used by one of the fastest sedans we’ve ever tested: the bmw m5.
bmw m’s high-performing german rival mercedes-amg also has a pair of way-too-fast suvs, the glc63 suv and the aforementioned glc63 s coupe, although the coupe was the only one quicker than the bmws. but we have an explanation for that: unlike the two bmws, which weigh the same and have identical power outputs, the glcs are set apart in both of those factors. the glc63 s coupe is three-tenths of a second quicker to 60 mph than its sibling, and that’s because the coupe is 65 pounds lighter than the suv and has 34 more horsepower.
bmw now holds some pretty serious acceleration records in our books, and we can't wait to see how the new x5 m and x6 m competition models stack up against their smaller siblings. as of now, no suv has broken the 3.0-second barrier, but one has come close: the lamborghini urus reached the mark in 3.1 seconds in our testing.