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Story: Adhish Alawani
Photography: Sanjay Raikar

The BMW X1 made its entry into the Indian market a few months back and took the competition by storm with a price tag that would challenge most of the SUVs in the local market. However, the X1 we tested initially was the diesel top end variant and what really comes in at the cheap tag is the petrol version. It was not for very long that we would stay away from testing the real cheap German and it finally happened as we decided to pitch it against a Japanese competitor. So, the scene was set with the X1 1.8i taking on the Outlander 2.4.

Design and Styling:
The X1 is German and the Outlander a Japanese. Everyone knows it and the design and styling prove it. While the X1 is more on the subtle and classy side, the Outlander poses to be a little on the aggressive side. X1, by its name, falls in the X family of BMWs that is essentially an SUV family. However, make it stand next to a Swift and it’s not even noticeably taller. I would rather call the X1 an estate than a softroader SUV. On the other hand, the Outlander looks much bigger and it definitely is. The Evo X lookalike nose makes it even more desirable. For me, the Outlander scores over the X1 from the outside.

From the inside though, the X1 spells its European character. Simple, yet it’s top-notch quality, fit and finish put the X1 a level above the Outlander. However, being the cheaper version amongst its siblings, this one misses out on pure leather upholstery. Outlander’s interiors are very basic. But small things like the rally type accelerator and brake pedals add sportiness to it. Overall, the X1 clearly stands out to be the better one from inside. Space wise though, the Outlander feels roomier than the tight cabin of the X1.

Engine and Performance:
The X1 1.8i, not being truthful to its name, is powered by a 2.0-litre engine. The 150PS of peak power and 350Nm of peak torque help the X1 get to 100kmph from standstill in 12.61 seconds. It’s not typically a powerful engine and thus isn’t excitingly fast. The peak torque coming in at a lowly 3,600rpm tells us of its strong mid range, which gives the car a fairly good pull in the city traffic.
The Outlander is powered by a 2.4-litre engine that makes 170PS of peak power (20PS over the X1) and 226Nm of peak torque (26Nm over the X1). This helps the Outlander to reach 100kmph from standstill in 11.79 seconds (0.82 seconds quicker than the X1). The even stronger part of Mitsubishi is its pull in kickdown from 40kmph to 120kmph, which takes 12.11 seconds against X1’s 16.28 seconds. Also, the Mitsubishi’s engine feels more refined than that of the Beemer.