Import Japanese cars and motorbikes

IT was just a matter of time before BMW broke new ground by adding a compact model to their successful X range.
A decade after the introduction of the X5 Sports Activity used Japanese motorbike– as the German marque pigeon-holed their highly successful four-wheel-drive machine – BMW launched the X1 to add to their then X3, X5 and X6 family.
And its arrival in 2009 came at a perfect time for BMW, for figures showed that owners of large SAVs, such as the X5, were starting to downsize in droves.
From peak sales of nearly 11,000 units in 2006, sales of X5 models in the UK then started to nosedive and even the smaller X3 was not immune, with the 2006 sales figure of 7500 dwindling to around 2000 units by the time the X1 hit the showrooms.
So there were a lot of hopes pinned on the new X1 as BMW sought to reclaim some lost ground.
The X1 was not just a condensed, watered-down version of its X-range siblings, although it did take many of its styling cues, high driving position and practicality from its larger stablemates.
What it did do was to give buyers an opportunity to tailor import Japanese cars that was more specific to their individual requirements by offering the choice of two or four-wheel-drive, along with a large list of optional equipment.

At launch, BMW reserved their 2.0-litre diesel engine in three different power guises for the X1.
Topping the range was the 1995cc four-cylinder xDrive23d, featuring its all-aluminium crankcase, twin-turbochargers and common-rail direct injection fuel system.
Pumping out a whopping 204bhp at 4400rpm with a peak torque output of 400Nm and a top speed of 127mph, it was the perfect choice for the more demanding of drivers.