CARS OF THE WORLD

BMW Active Tourer (U06) 2022.

BMW Active Tourer (U06) 2022. In 2014, the German company BMW decided on a desperate and bold step — to put into production a new family of Active Tourer with front-wheel drive cars.

And the Bavarians did not fail — after two years more than 100 thousand units were sold, including Gran Tourer versions.

Further, unfortunately, demand began to sag — no more than 30,000 cars were sold during the entire 2020.

Despite such disappointing fact, the company didn’t cancel the output of II generation in a body of a compact van taking into account that the one-volume format and design remain the same.

The developers comfort themselves with the belief in the preservation of demand for B-class cars, which are inferior to crossovers in popularity.

After all, practical car owners primarily value reliability and economy. The engineers have tried to bring the exterior of the new model to the updated BMW style. It was also decided to completely change the interior of the car.

Appearance BMW Active Tourer (U06) 2022.

The new Bavarian has gained an impressive appearance by increasing the size of the radiator grille.

Previously engineers used differentiated approach in choosing size of «nostrils» — the novelty has direct references to BMW X7 model.

Only the BMW 2-Series has noticeably bigger elements, and they partially «crawl» on the hood. The scale is emphasized by the reduced size of the headlights.

The optics are equipped with LED stuffing, which is available from the base configuration. Adaptive matrix lights will be installed for an additional fee.

Looking at the profile, the five-door body has gotten a «lighter» look:

The front pillars have lost the extra blank windows (they’ve moved to the doors).
The windshield is located at a steeper inclination.
The hood line began to look more horizontal.
The luggage windows have increased in size.
The whole window plane is dashing up to the rear of the body.

Earlier the doors had usual handles with natural grip, but now the manufacturer has replaced them with recessed handles.

The drag coefficient Cx decreased from 0.27 to 0.26. Most likely the sunk configuration of handles was made just for the benefit of aerodynamics of the body.

At the stern, the engineers placed the exhaust pipes under the skirt of rear bumper.

Interior and equipment

The interior has undergone dramatic changes, due to the installation of a modern multimedia system BMW iDrive based on BMW OS 8.

It includes a common widescreen display with two zones:

digital instrument cluster (10.25″);
media system (10.7″).

There is no visor in its traditional version for the dashboard. There are almost no physical keys on the entire front console.

Usually in its middle part is located a block that controls the climate control, which is now adjusted from the monitor «multimedia». The air ducts haven’t gone anywhere.

Another modern innovation is taken from BMW iX — elongated «floating» armrest with start/stop buttons of power unit, emergency stop, electronic parking brake options.

Here is also located a compact gearbox selector, as well as a rotary puck, regulating sound volume.

Due to this ergonomic layout in the center of the console there is space for storage of various small items and gadgets. There are also a couple of cup holders.

The novelty provides maximum comfort due to the well thought-out organization of space and ergonomic functionality of the interior. Regardless of the configuration, the steering wheel is wrapped in a leather braid.

If the buyer wishes, the armchairs can also be finished in genuine leather. You can also count on massage seats.

Rear row seats remain the same — the back is divided into three sections in the ratio 40:20:40, with each section adjustable in its inclination. The seats themselves shift 130 mm.

Based on the configurations, the volume of the luggage compartment ranges from 406 to 470 liters, but if you fold the rear row space will be much more — 1370-1455 liters.

The trunk door is equipped with an electric drive already in «base». In addition, there is a dual-zone climate control, navigation system BMW Maps and a rich assortment of electronic assistants, including cruise control, which is able to recognize pedestrians, and it has a lane control assistant.

Also standard equipment includes parktronic, complete with a rearview camera.

The list of «options» for an additional fee includes:

panoramic top;
Harman Kardon sound system;
electric towbar;
adaptive cruise control with Stop&Go option;
all-around vision system;
projection screen.
There are four USB-C ports and 12-volt sockets (in the first row, luggage compartment) in the cabin.

Technical Specifications

A new compact BMW U06 is based on II generation UKL2 platform, but the architecture remains the same. The front «truck» is equipped with McPherson struts familiar to most motorists with a larger castor (increased by 15%).

An independent three-lever system is installed in the rear. For an additional charge the manufacturer provides M-suspension with upgraded shock absorbers and lowered ground clearance.

The size of wheel disks is also an option. In the «base» it is 16 or 17 inches, then the model is more expensive — 19″.

Compared to its predecessor the body of the new car increased in stiffness, which affected the changes of dimensions, but in a smaller way.

Dimensions of the Active Tourer

Length (mm) — 4,386 – 32 longer

Width (mm) — 1,824 — wider by 24

Height (mm) — 1,576 — 21 higher

Wheelbase (mm) — 2,670

Ground clearance (mm) — increased from 165 to 171

As you can see, only wheelbase hasn’t changed. Tires with a high profile 205/65 R16 (previously 205/60 R16) influenced on clearance.

Based on the complete set, the engine range includes several power units:

The base models BMW 218i is a 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine producing 136 hp and 230 Nm.

The 220i version is the same, but with a boosted engine: 156 hp and 240 Nm.

The 223i is equipped with in-line four-cylinder turbocharged engine with an output of 204 hp and 320 Nm.

The 218d version is a diesel four-cylinder unit with two turbochargers. Output is 150 hp and 360 Nm.

There is a 48-volt starter-generator to support 220i and 223i engines. It is located inside the gearbox and can deliver 19 hp.

It is activated when the start-stop system is activated, helping during the first seconds of acceleration of the car.

In this case, the final power reaches 170 hp and 218 hp. Hybrid version was also available before, but was limited to one instance. Now the range is extended to two.

The BMW 225e has a 136-horsepower gasoline engine coupled with an electric motor (109 hp). The total output is 245 hp.

Under the hood of 230e modification the same forced 150-horsepower unit + 176 hp electric motor is available. The index of combined pull of the whole complex reaches 326 hp.

However, hybrids have essentially important shortcoming — the volume of a luggage compartment is reduced to 406 and 1370 liters.

The capacity of the former Active Tourer was 468-1510 liters. Both hybrid versions are able to cover 80 km on the WLTP cycle on a single charge due to the traction battery capacity of 14.9 kW⋅h.

Absolutely all models, regardless of the type of tractive power, are equipped with a 7-band Steptronic robot with a dual-clutch. Another nuance is that only the hybrids will have all-wheel drive.

Competitors

The novelty of the Active Tourer is opposed by serious rivals in the form of models of famous brands:

Mercedes-Benz B-class.
Citroen C4 Picasso.
Peugeot 3008.

The car from the company Mercedes is a worthy competitor among them. It also has a front-wheel drive platform, as well as a 7G DCT robot.

Release date and prices

Assembly of the Active Tourer will take place at the Leipzig plant, where the former models came off.

The novelty will only appear on European markets from February 2022. The price starts at €37,500. It is the equivalent of 2,950,000 rubles at the current exchange rate.

The minimum price tag for hybrids is 44,000 euros (about 3.7 million rubles). They will go on sale in the summer.