Nice car, bit pricey to run though

As you might expect from BMW this car is a joy to drive. It's smooth and torquey even though the 2.0D engine is a little small for such a large vehicle. The ride is a bit on the firm side but not uncomfortable, and the taut suspension does make for surprisingly good open-road handling. Off road the car has rather limited abilities though, and especially with normal road tyres fitted you shouldn't be expecting to drive anywhere particularly challenging. Inside, the finish is nice if a bit plasticcy, with comfortable seating, good radio/CD, cruise control, parking sensors and climate control all of which work very well.

For me the biggest shock was the running costs - not MPG, because it's not bad in that respect, 40+ round town and over 50 on a run. Services and parts though are extortionate and it's best not to scrimp on that as the car is rather fussy on things being done right. It insists for example that you don't do lots of short runs, or it'll coke up its inlet manifold. If you don't use BMW-approved tyres in matched sets it'll start making nasty noises from the transfer box. Turbos have a reputed life of around 150,000 miles.

So, a nice car to drive but not a cheap one to own. Depreciation will be heavy in the early years and expect to spend a bit to keep it in good condition in later years.