Quote:
Originally Posted by TheBingoBalls
I'm sure people buy RWD SUVs - it's why BMW still makes RWD X5/X6's. This is about catering to the majority and offering a product that the general public expects it to be - a RWD SUV is not that. If I'm buying any SUV, I should not have to think if it is RWD or AWD. This needed to be xDrive at launch and then a RWD variant later on if BMW chooses. BMW all but ensured a slow reception. BMW will sell iX3s but whatever the number is, it's almost guaranteed that sales would be much more if it was equipped with xDrive to start.
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I understand the frustration at being left out at the start. But, this actually is not about catering to the majority. This is about matching production to capacity for the launch of many new components. From BMW's perspective, assume they have final assembly or component capacity of 25k units for year one globally, 50k for year two globally (hypothetical numbers), and some ramp after that closer to free market demand. If their Sales management team for BMWNA alone, even without BMW Canada, signs up for enough production to account for all available allocations, why would BMW stress the development and launch phase with the complexity of two model variants?
Again, for those in situations different from yours, buying an SUV has long included thinking about rwd vs awd. Those south of the Mason Dixon line have been making that conscious decision for decades and manufacturers have responded with those offerings.