BMW has unveiled a long-wheelbase version of its recently launched second-generation X1, which will be sold exclusively in China. The stretched version of Munich’s entry-level SUV, which goes by the name X1 Li (similar to stretched versions of the 7-series, which also use the 'Li' suffix), measures 4,560mm in length, making it 79mm longer than the standard-wheelbase version and just 100mm shorter than the bigger, more expensive X3.
The increase in length is concentrated wholly within the wheelbase, providing the X1 Li with a longer rear door and improved rear-seat legroom. Therefore, on the flipside, despite the stretch in length, the boot capacity remains the same as the standard car, at a good 505 litres.
The new BMW X1 Li will be sold with only the choice of two different petrol engines – a turbocharged 1.5-litre, three-cylinder with 135.8hp in the front-wheel-drive X1 sDrive18Li and a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder offering 191.6hp in the front-wheel-drive X1 sDrive20Li and four-wheel-drive X1 xdrive20Li, and a gutsier 231.1hp in the four-wheel-drive X1 xDrive25Li. The decision to offer a long-wheelbase version of the X1 in China mirrors the move taken with the BMW 2-series Active Tourer, which is offered with the choice of two different wheelbases – the longer of which is sold under the 2-series Gran Tourer name.
The X1 has proved particularly popular among Chinese car buyers with over 2,00,000 examples of the first-generation model, or nearly a quarter of total production, sold in China. The X1 Li will be produced at BMW’s Chinese partner Brilliance at a joint-venture factory in Tiexi. In India, BMW launched the standard-wheelbase X1 at the Auto Expo 2016 earlier this year, and unlike China, ours is available with only a diesel engine.