Gateway To Luxury

The BMW X1 launched the entry-level luxury SUV segment in India. And, with the launch of its second-generation, became the leader of its segment – albeit with a slight margin. But now the XC40 is here to spoil the party.

- Ishan Raghava

Back in 2011, BMW set the cat amongst the pigeons in the luxury segment with the launch of the first premium compact SUV, the X1. For the first time in the history of the Indian luxury automotive market, there was an SUV – albeit a crossover SUV – that was not only affordable but also carried one of the most desirable badges in the world. And the fact that the X1 was an SUV at an unexpectedly affordable price only accelerated demand. Consequently, customers were prepared to wait for months to get their hands on the X1 – which soon became the latest status symbol in town.

But it wasn’t long before other luxury brands caught up, and the segment saw a flurry of launches – like the Audi Q3 and Mercedes Benz GLA. The X1 lost it top dog status, but BMW wasn’t going to sit quietly and see the segment that it had launched slip away. And so, in 2016, the current-gen X1 was launched – not only bringing it back into contention but also making it the leader of the segment once again. Currently, it leads the compact luxury SUV segment by a slender margin over the GLA. And this segment is especially important for two customer categories – female buyers and first-time luxury car buyers.

However, the status quo of this segment is set for upheaval, with the launch of the Volvo XC40 – which will be launched on the 4th of July. You can read our review of the XC40 elsewhere in this issue. So, to keep it simple, in this feature we’ll focus on how it compares with the BMW X1.

Dressed for success