ONE OF THE EARLY CRUSADERS OF THE LUXURY COMFORT CROSSOVER CRAZE, BMW’S TOP-SELLING X3 CONTINUES TO EXHILARATE AND EXCITE, FLAUNTING A FRESH NEW ‘DO FOR ITS 21ST BIRTHDAY

BY DAN SALAMONE

Since the explosion in the ’80s of the status-seeking young nouveau riche generation, BMW has been a brand synonymous with stylish, upwardly mobile economic strivers. Nearly every huge box office touchstone of the 1980s featured BMW as a visual shorthand for success. Movies like Beverly Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon, and The Terminator, plus iconic TV shows like Miami Vice and Moonlighting, all prominently spotlighted cars from the 5 and 7 Series of BMW’s past.

Today, BMW is still considered a favored toy of young corporate ladder climbers, but the German marque has since expanded beyond that popular-but-narrow brand image. ‘Today, the legacy maker continues to broaden its base through brilliant, genre-launching models like the new 2025 BMW X3. The latest iteration of the lithe compact crossover flaunts the ideal synthesis of buzz-generating new technology, hair-raising performance, and elegance. Among the subtle but powerful improvements include enlarging every external dimension, and while one might intuitively assume that would affect operational efficiency, the sleeker and more aerodynamic body has resulted in a lower coefficient of drag. Returning are the four- and six-cylinder pow-ertrains from the 2024 model, but this time with the inclusion of a mild hybrid component, presaging the future arrival of a fully electric model, iX3. (Note: all future BMW models containing the lower case “i” will be exclusively reserved for its EV models.

The refined balance of previous X3 models also fortunately returns, as it is this precision drive element that perhaps has most driven (pun intended) the buzz that has made the X3 one of BMW’s hottest models. As of 2025, all-wheel drive is now standard, and despite the size increase in the exterior design, these changes aren’t just a reflection of an oafish belief that bigger automatically means better. The X3 remains a welcome balance between chic and tasteful luxury.

The new tech isn’t haphazardly applied. The updated driver assist systems for this new model include automated adaptive cruise control and lane change technol-ogy, including the ability to recognize traffic lights and a parking assistant that can park in a pre-designated space of your choosing.

For the power hungry, the perfor-mance-minded M50 rocks a 3.0L turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine with a hair-whipping 393 ponies and 4.4-second 0-60 time.

With the base model available to the public for just under $51,000 and the M50 clocking in at $65,275, the new X3 is set to become to the 2020s what the 5 and 7 series were to the ’80s – utterly iconic.

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