The new BMW X3 M was subjected to a top speed test on a German highway with a no-speed-limit section, with the run recorded from the driver’s perspective and shared online.
Hitting the maximum speed in any car on a public road is scary, let alone in a tall SUV with more power than some of the previous generation supercars.
You can see the X3 bouncing a few times due to the uneven surface at nearly 180 mph (290 km/h), and that alone is enough to make most people change their pants, but at least everything ended well and no sporty premium compact SUV was damaged on that day.
Review: BMW X3 M And X4 M Are Ready To Rock The Compact Performance SUV Niche
The vehicle is in X3 M Competition spec, which means that it packs the more powerful version of the new 3.0-liter twin-turbo six-cylinder engine. The lump delivers 503 HP (510 PS / 375 kW) and 441 lb-ft (598 Nm) of torque to the rear-biased all-wheel drive system through an eight-speed automatic transmission. It takes only 4.0 seconds to hit the 60 mph (96 km/h) mark from a standstill, and will keep pushing up to 177 mph (284 km/h) after choosing the M Driver’s Package from the options list.
As for the regular X3 M, it comes with 472 HP (479 PS / 352 kW) and an identical torque number. The 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) acceleration climbs to 4.1 seconds in this model, which has a 174 mph (280 km/h) top speed.
The X3 M has an MSRP of just a little under $70,000 in the United States, while the X3 M Competition starts at $76,900.