Wait a second here, isn’t it a bit antithetical to strap a hybrid vehicle on a dyno to measure it for horsepower? Well, in some instances we might be tempted to agree – though our curious side tells us it’s always good to know how much power any particular automobile makes – but definitely not in the case of the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6.
After all, BMW itself proclaims that this vehicle is the most powerful production hybrid ever offered with 480 horsepower and 575 pound-feet of torque.
Claims such as this must, MUST we say, be tested. Fortunately for us, the chaps over at Inside Line happen to have a dyno at their disposal, along with the aforementioned hybrid SUV. So, how’d it fair?
Measured output at the wheels came in at 368 horsepower and 402 lb-ft of torque. Now, it’s expected that all vehicles will make a good bit less power at the wheels than at the engine’s flywheel, which is how they are rated from the factory. But in the instance of the X6 Hybrid, it made way less than expected given its prodigious claimed figures.
There are all sorts of explanations as to why the BMW ActiveHybrid X6 may not have made as many pound-feet as expected, and you can find some of them by reading Inside Line’s summary here.
Acceleration tests are promised, meaning we may get an answer about those elusive few ponies soon enough. Finally, click here to read our own impressions after driving the monster hybrid SUV last November.
