AC Schnitzer and Hartge are two of the most famous car tuners and they need no introduction. Over the years, each one of these companies focused part of their efforts on the BMW brand and several “tuned-up” bimmers were released by the two of them.
Hartge was the first one to open doors with their own version of the BMW X6 xDrive35d. First changes were made to the powerplant, the twin-turbo 3.0 liter diesel engine received an upgrade to 328 horsepower and 675 Nm of torque. To handle all that weight and power, Hartge X6 xDrive35d was placed on ultra-wide tires, 295 / 30 ZR 22 at the front and 335 / 25 ZR 22 at the rear.
Suspensions have been lowered as well by 30 mm. The Hartge X6 runs from 0-62 mph in 6.8 seconds and has a top speed of 159 mph.
The competitor, AC Schnitzer has also worked hard on their own version of the X6 xDrive 35d. The engine power has been upgraded to 310 horsepower and 680Nm of torque. The dimensions of the X6 have been increased, 70 mm wider at the front axle and 80 mm wider at the rear.
AC Schnitzer X6 xDrive35d sits on ultra-thin 23″ tires. Despite having 15 hp less, the lighter AC Schnitzer X6 runs from 0 to 62 mph in 6.3 seconds.
German magazine Autobild decided to put the two “monsters” side-by-side and see if a clear winner will emerge. Fuel consumption numbers were also taken into consideration. The white X6 by AC Schnitzer showed an average of 20.6 mpg, while the Hartge X6 recorded an average of 22.4
High cornering speeds are attainable with these cars. The AC Schnitzer is more stable and the suspension allows for less body roll.
Both brands have equipped the X6 model with expensive body kits and overall like or dislike feeling is just a matter of personal preference.
In conclusion, there is no clear winner here, both cars come very close to each other in both performance and design, but since a winner still needs to exist, Autobild favors the AC Schnitzer….
Article in german can be found here and the english Google Translation
Author: Horatiu B.
Source: http://www.bmwblog.com/2009/10/02/head- ... nd-hartge/