BMW X6

Munich's fastest full-size SUV-coupé gets mid-life powertrain and chassis tweaks

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MODEL TESTED M COMPETITION

Price £131,405 Power 617bhp Torque 553lb ft 0-60mph 3.5sec 30-70mph in fourth 4.8sec Fuel economy 20.5mpg CO2 emissions 291g/km 70-0mph 44.6m

Super-SUVs like the BMW X6 M have always been a puzzling concept: big, heavy and tall, yet supposedly also fast, sharp in the corners and fun to drive. For the traditional car enthusiast, they have never really worked.

But it seems modern suspension technology is allowing the superSUV to come of age. Four-wheel steering, active anti-roll bars and air suspension - or in the case of the Ferrari Purosangue, mind-bending spool-valve dampers - all work together to deal with the weight and high centre of gravity of these SUVs to create genuine driver's cars.

The X6 M - and its mechanically identical sibling, the X5 M - have long done without many of those mechanical aids, sticking with steel coil springs and a standard rear axle that doesn't steer. The only concession are active anti-roll bars.

The standard X5 and X6 have just been facelifted, which has brought in mild-hybrid tech, and that even extends to the M versions. However, while there have been a number of chassis optimisations, the BMWs remain quite simple - or quite pure, depending on how you look at it.

We have put the refreshed X6 M through the full road test to find out whether that recipe is able to translate M-car sensations to an SUV and whether it can work on the road as well as the track.

DESIGN AND ENGINEERING