2025 BMW X3: What’s It Like to Live With?
We’re spending a year with the BMW X3 to see if it satisfies our need for luxury and sporty driving
What do you want to know about?
What We Got And Why
Over the last decade, BMW’s SUVs have begun an upmarket shift, and it isn’t just their prices that have inflated. Today’s redesigned X3 is larger, taller and heavier than the first-generation X5 of the late 1990s. What was once BMW’s smallest SUV offering is now moving up in the world, and its smaller sibling, the X1, has bulked up to fill the space it left behind.
The 2025 model we purchased marks the beginning of a new generation, which is expected to expand over the coming years with electrified variants as well as high-performance M models. As such, we’ve decided to take a glimpse into the future by spending some time with the base SUV that underpins current and future models.
What did we get?
For 2025, the BMW X3 is only available in two trim levels, both of which come standard with all-wheel drive. The range-topper for now is the sporty M50 xDrive, which pairs more aggressive styling with a 393-horsepower turbocharged inline-six engine. This isn’t the one we bought.
Instead, we went with the current base model, the X3 30 xDrive, as it’s the one most people will buy because it’s less expensive. While its 255-hp turbo inline-four engine is less potent than what you get in the M50, it’s expected to be more efficient. In terms of options, we kept things fairly light with the single most expensive add-on being the $3,400 Premium package. Given that it’s the only way to get adaptive cruise control, a curved display and a panoramic roof, it was a must.
From there, we paid $650 for this X3’s Arctic Race Blue paint, $600 for its 20-inch two-tone wheels, $200 for the Parking Assistance package, and $235 for all-weather floor mats. Thankfully, its dark brown interior finish was a no-cost option.
Add in a $1,175 destination fee, and our new BMW X3 cost us $56,260, representing only a modest increase over its $51,125 base price. (Edmunds purchased this vehicle for the purposes of evaluation.) Still, while BMW’s latest is priced similarly to an Audi Q5 or a Mercedes-Benz GLC, it costs significantly more than SUVs like the Hyundai Santa Fe and the Kia Sorento, distant rivals that go toe-to-toe in terms of available features and space. Does the X3 feel premium enough to fend off an emerging class that’s also making an upmarket push?
Why did we get it?
The simple truth is the BMW X3 is not only all-new, it’s extremely popular. Within BMW’s lineup, it’s one of its best-sellers, falling second only to the larger X5. Last year, it outsold the aforementioned Q5, the GLC, and the Porsche Macan. As such, the X3 is important to both BMW as a brand and you, the consumer.
This updated X3 sports an interior that’s more in line with the rest of the brand’s lineup, opting for a minimalist layout that’s light on buttons, heavy on screens, and has more than a few quirky bits. Its air vents, for one, now require the use of a small plastic lever to adjust, making it difficult to dial in the precise amount of air flow you want. Simultaneously, most of its vital controls are now adjusted via its central touchscreen, meaning you’ll be interacting with its display as you adjust your settings on the move. Over the next year, we will test if these updates are true improvements or just changes made with form over function in mind.
Even if the base X3 30 xDrive is less expensive than the M50 xDrive model, it makes a compelling case that it deserves a spot in your garage thanks to its slightly softer ride. It’s a driving experience that, in our testing so far, has proven to retain the sportiness BMW is known for without pairing it with unnecessary firmness. Over the next 20,000 miles, we’ll see just how well this latest X3 performs at our test track, on road trips, and in plenty of real-world commuting.
Edmunds purchased this vehicle for the purpose of evaluation.
2025 BMW X3: Real-World Fuel Economy
The X3 isn’t exactly a fuel-sipper, but will it be a drain on our wallets?
Average lifetime mpg: 22.7
EPA mpg rating: 29 combined (27 city/33 highway)
Best fill mpg: 25.6
Best range (miles): 433.8
Current odometer: 1,999
2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse: What’s It Like to Live With?
We bought a 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse to put it through a one-year, 20,000-mile test.
| Miles Driven: | Average MPG: |
| 1,151 | 18.3 |
Latest Highlights
- We bought a Ford Mustang Dark Horse to fill the Shelby-sized hole in our heart
- This is the fourth Mustang variant Edmunds has purchased
- Will it live up to our high expectations?
What do you want to know about?
What We Got And Why
by Reese Counts, Vehicle Test Editor
• Our test vehicle: 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse
• Base MSRP: $59,780 including destination
• MSRP as tested: $74,155
When I went back and checked through past vehicles from Edmunds’ One-Year Road Test fleet, I saw that this was in fact the fourth Ford Mustang we’ve purchased (fifth if you count the Mustang Mach-E). Why do we Mustangs keep ending up in our garage? Take a peek back through some of our posts and you’ll see positive adjectives like “awesome” and “fun” thrown around a lot. When the seventh-generation Mustang debuted, it wasn’t hard to make a case for the new Dark Horse model to replace our dearly departed 2020 Shelby GT500.
What’s the Dark Horse?
Until a new Shelby-badged model arrives, the Dark Horse is the most potent roadgoing new Mustang available. Think of it as a more track-focused version of the Mustang GT. The 5.0-liter Coyote V8 that has powered the Mustang for more than a decade gets a bump in power. Connecting rods borrowed from the GT500, improved airflow, and a few other tricks bring output to 500 horsepower and 418 lb-ft of torque, up 20 hp and 3 lb-ft over the Mustang GT.
A Tremec six-speed manual transmission with a transmission-oil cooler is standard on the Dark Horse but — sigh — that’s not what we went with. We opted for the $1,595 10-speed automatic transmission. There was some debate internally about which transmission to go with, but our instrumented testing has repeatedly shown that the automatic is the quicker option. We will be using the Dark Horse for some Edmunds U-Drags races, so getting the quickest available car won the debate.
The Dark Horse looks sharp, with dark accents across the front fascia, dark badging and a trunk-mounted spoiler. The grille has two large intakes, feeding air to help cool both the engine and brakes. Keeping temperatures in check was important given the Dark Horse’s track-focused nature. The car includes an auxiliary engine oil cooler, a rear axle cooler, a lighter radiator and more powerful fans.
Brakes come by way of Brembo, with six-piston calipers up front and four-piston calipers in the rear. The 13.9-inch front rotors are larger than those on the Mustang GT. The rear sway bar has been beefed up, as has the suspension. The Dark Horse comes with Ford’s MagneRide adaptive dampers, and power is sent to the rear wheels through a Torsen limited-slip differential. All Dark Horses ride on 19-inch wheels with Pirelli rubber.
Because we wanted the fastest possible version, we opted for the $5,495 Dark Horse Handling package. It includes a larger, lower front splitter and a Gurney flap for the rear wing, both of which are removable with a few screws. The springs are stiffer, the sway bars have been further enlarged, and the 19-inch wheels get Pirelli Trofeo RS tires, a more aggressive compound than the standard Dark Horse. The wheels are wider, too, with wider 305-section front and 315-section rear tires.
Prices for the 2025 model start at $62,925 for the standard Dark Horse and $66,920 for Dark Horse Premium, but we found a 2024 with a slightly lower MSRP still sitting on a dealer lot in Orange County. It was a loaded Dark Horse Premium with $1,995 Recaro seats that are very similar to the seats on our old GT500. All in, we got our car for an MSRP of $74,155. For reference, we paid $81,280 for our 2020 Shelby GT500. If we’d opted for the carbon-fiber wheels, the Dark Horse would have crested that figure by several thousand dollars.
Why did we get It?
It’s not hard to see the Dark Horse’s appeal. I’ll refer back to my original point about Mustangs generally being awesome to have in the garage. This is called a One-Year Road Test, but we kept the old Shelby for much longer than that simply because it was fun to drive and we kept finding more things to do with it. Even with the abysmal fuel economy, it rarely stayed parked for long.
Yes, the Dark Horse isn’t as powerful as the GT500, but we can fix that with a few modifications. Want to see how the Dark Horse performs with a Ford Performance supercharger bolted to the top? Check back in the not-too-distant future.
Edmunds purchased this vehicle for the purpose of evaluation.
2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse: Real-World Fuel Economy
The fuel economy is probably going to be bad. That’s OK.
Average lifetime mpg: 18.3
EPA mpg rating: 17 combined ( 14 city/22 highway )
Best fill mpg: 19.1
Best range (miles): 307.7
Current odometer: 1,151
2026 Tesla Model Y: What’s It Like to Live With?
The updated version of the world’s best-selling EV joins our fleet for a 20,000-mile test
| Miles Driven: | Average Electricity Consumption (kWh/100 miles): |
| 2,091 | 38.7 |
Latest Highlights
- Tesla gave the Model Y a big refresh for 2026
- Updates include new styling, better tech and a more refined ride quality
- How will this EV hold up after 20,000 miles? Let’s find out
What do you want to know about?
What We Got and Why?
by Ryan Greger, Senior Social Media Strategist
• Our test vehicle: 2026 Tesla Model Y Launch Series
• Base MSRP: $59,990
• MSRP as tested: $61,380
• What we paid: $68,732
There’s no getting around it: The Tesla Model Y is a massively successful product. Not only was it the best-selling electric vehicle in the world in 2023 and 2024, it was also the best-selling SUV, full stop. For a relatively new product (the Model Y only launched in 2020) to make such a global impact is, frankly, unheard of — especially considering it’s an EV. This speaks volumes about the Model Y’s importance to not only to Tesla but to the automotive industry as a whole. That’s why we bought a new one for our One-Year Road Test fleet.
What did we get?
We paid $61,380 out the door for our 2026 Tesla Model Y Launch Series. The Launch Series is currently the only trim available for the new Y, and it’s essentially a fully loaded Long Range model that includes Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) hands-free driving assistant and all-wheel drive.
The new Model Y’s updates largely mirror those that the Model 3 received last year. The exterior styling is even more dramatically updated, with a Cybertruck-esque front light bar (fortunately the only bit of Cybertruck design language here) and a more angular look overall. Tesla also redesigned the taillights and incorporated something we’ve yet to see on another vehicle: A hidden LED element shines down on a silver panel across the trunk lid, resulting in a light bar-like effect without actually using, well, a light bar. The new exterior styling likely won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but at least Tesla has more greatly differentiated the Y’s design from the 3’s.
The redesigned interior is just about identical to the Model 3’s, save for one crucial difference: There’s still a turn signal stalk. Whereas the Model 3 pivoted to unintuitive steering wheel-mounted turn signal buttons (which we really, really don’t like), the Model Y keeps a physical stalk. Unfortunately, Tesla’s annoying on-screen gear shift is present here, and in the limited driving we’ve done so far, we’ve already found ourselves in the wrong gear on multiple occasions despite using the system as designed.
Edmunds purchased this vehicle for the purpose of evaluation.
2026 Tesla Model Y: Real-World Range
How’s the fuel economy been relative to expectations? Sum it up.
Average lifetime consumption (kWh/100 miles): NA
EPA rating (kWh/100 miles): NA combined
Best consumption (kWh/100 miles): NA
Best range (miles): NA
Current odometer: 2,091
