First Drive: 2008 BMW X6

As for the rest, it's what we've come to expect from BMW. The thick, beefy steering wheel is shod in leather and anointed with several buttons for nav and volume -- there's even a heater for the wheel if you desire. Our loaded-up X50i tester featured i-Drive, which seemed no better or worse than the version found in the latest models. The driver and front passenger do get a slightly cheesy, but ultimately useful addition to the interior -- a leather kneepad mounted to the center console, useful for bracing for corners or for when you want to drive like Johnny Bench.

To differentiate it from the now seven-passenger MPV the X5 has become, BMW yanked out the middle rear seat and replaced it with a handy console for drinks and gear. Headroom is not as compromised as the low roofline would suggest. Through the magic of product packaging, BMW managed to squeeze in plenty of legroom and just the right amount of rake in the seats so six footers with normal haircuts shouldn't have a headroom problem.

So the X6 is powerful, agile, and surprisingly engaging, but questions persist about its mission in the marketplace. Given rising gas prices and the sinking economy, is a 400-horsepower, four-passenger, all-wheel-drive rocketship like the X50i really what the U.S. needs right now? Only time will tell.

Or has BMW sliced the niche too thin? Given rising gas prices and the sinking economy, is a 400 horsepower, four-passenger, all-wheel-drive rocket ship like the X50i really what the U.S. needs right now? Only time will tell.

WHEN 4.4 + 2 = 50?

If you're wondering why the BMW X6 xDrive 50i's name is such a mouthful, blame the Koreans first and the odd logic of BMW marketeers second.

Apparently, the variations of the alphanumeric name X650i are already taken by Samsung, for a line of camera phones. Why not then go with X6 4.4i, following the X5 naming convention?

Apparently, the variations of the alphanumeric name X650i are already taken by Samsung for a line of camera phones. Why not then go with X6 4.4i, following the X5 naming convention? Because then it would appear the X6 is lower in the lineup than the X5 4.8i, even though X6 is clearly more powerful, more performance oriented, and targeted toward a more sophisticated and affluent buyer. Hence the rationale for including the name of the all-wheel-drive system (xDrive) and adding a couple of nonsensical digits to the end (4.4-liters + 2 turbos apparently = 50), so it's clear the X6 is at the top of the heap.