[slayer72]

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bmw...ver-2015-08-08

Dan Neil the writer is a Wall Street Journal hack.

[Merc for hire]

Nothing wrong with ripping on the obscenely expensive and useless X6M.

[uberspeed]

While the negative tone was heavy handed he makes valid points. Lost me when he stated that drifting was for morons though, seems he's not a car guy and doesn't appreciate motoring fun, get that person a Prius and away from reviewing cars.

[Cyberdemon]

Journalists are entitled to opinions, and the "Crossover coupe" in general is logically stupid, there is no doubt about that.

The X4, X6, and even the new MB GLE are all in the same boat. Obviously two major automotive players thought they would make sense, and who can blame them. Here's why it makes sense:

1 - The "coupe" has a definitive appeal to some people. My wife coo'ed the first time she saw an X6 and asked if we could get one. Those practical diesel wagon drivers here won't understand that logic, we're wired differently.

2 - They are based on existing products, but carry a substantial margin premium. The X4 and X6 are both $6000 USD more expensive than their X3 and X5 siblings. That's more money for effectively less car. Guys who spend money on "Superlight track packs" that strip out standard equipment while raising costs know what it's like to spend more for less, they just justify it as "Speed" instead of "style".

3 - People who buy $100,000 cars are not doing it based on logic. People who buy $10,000 used cars and keep them for a decade do it based on logic. People who want a shiny 500hp SUV that they can drive to their law office buy X6M's.

All giant fast trucks, from the Jeep SRT8 to the old Ford Lightning are exercises in silliness. But people are still buying them, and BMW knows it, so they could care less what one journalist thinks, it's a wonderful pool of margin for an automaker that already has a complete spread of vehicles and can continue to fill niche gaps.

[doublevanosrc]

Why this guy is reviewing cars is beyond me. When reviewing a specific car one has to go in with an unbiased understanding that not all cars will suit you. Some models are suited for a specific clientele and some for the everyday Joe. If you cannot understand this notion you shouldn't be reviewing cars.

[Merc for hire]

X5:


X6:

[overcoil]

I think the X6M serves a purpose, when you commute a significant distance on fast two lane roads where you often have deer strikes, vehicles like the X6M offer the pace of a car with the safety of a pick-up.

[Transfer]

Dan Neil is actually quite a good auto journalist and not just some random WSJ writer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Neil

The X6M has the cool factor with its aggressive and fashionable looks as well as ridiculous power, but it is otherwise useless. I sat in one a couple weeks back and couldn't see why anyone would get this over the X5M.

BTW why is this posted in the 2 series forum?

[Xiaoxi]

The 2015 BMW X6 M costs $109,995, as tested, and is yet remarkably useless.

Sounds about right.

[AWheeler]

Dan Neil is a highly acclaimed journalist and provided an impression that I think many automotive journalists have echoed about the X6 line, in one way or another.

BMW created exactly the polarizing, curious, high-margin performance vehicle that they had in mind.