My BMW loaner

[Sharp11]

I'm driving an X3 xdrive 3.0si for a couple of days while my dealer tries, for a second time, to properly diagnose and cure what they thought was a screeching alternator-tensioning belt. They also offered to detail my car after the hacks swirl-marked the crap out of it last time it was in.

So for a couple of days I've got an X3 with 9k on the clock.

The interior is an amalgamation of BMW parts, same gauges as my old Z4, but center stack climate-control, headlight switch and parking brake/ignition key all from the E46.

Seats are comfortable but insubstantial, at least compared to my ZHP's.

The X3 is quiet and the engine is a gem - silky smooth and revs freely, almost Honda-like, but the transmission is kinda odd - seems to hold onto lower gears way too long.

The ride is very bouncy and the steering very light. Nice steering wheel for an SUV, though. Brakes are strong, body very rigid.

Overall, it feels fairly spartan, more so than I remembered when I last drove one a couple of years ago.

I miss my car already