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FIRSTDRIVEBMW X1

CAR LAUNCHES are usually accompanied by much fanfare and pomp – posh hotels, lavish meals, glorious test routes and a range of immaculately presented cars to choose from. But the recent BMW X1 event in Mallorca was a bit different. For one thing, it wasn’t really the launch – more a pre-launch sampler. Secondly, there was no dreary press conference to sit through and no USB-stick packed with facts and figures – any information gleaned about the car had to be done so in conversation with the engineers. Finally, we couldn’t really see the cars properly because they were still covered in swirly camouflage and we weren’t allowed to photograph any part of the car – inside or out – so when the time came to write about the car I had absolutely nothing to refer to, bar a few badly scribbled notes.