BABY brothers seem to be all the rage these days as car buyers strive to save money by downsizing but maintain a prestige presence.

The last few months have seen premium SUV contenders like the Range Rover Evoque and Audi Q3 enter the fray with near instant impact.

Arch rival BMW was already sweeping up sales with its own sibling to grown up stablemates like the X3 and X5 soft-roaders and the more quirky X6.

Billed as a compact crossover, the X1 doesn't fall short on choice boasting no less than 17 models in the range with three diesel engines and rear or all-wheel drive.

And for a Beamer the prices are pretty keen too, with an entry point of £24,420 for the sDrive 18d SE model - £2,350 cheaper than the tested M Sport version.

With its raised driving position and positive dynamics the X1 certainly lives up to the racy image of a BMW sports utility vehicle, though if anything the power steering could do with a bit more assistance.

That said, it's an enjoyable car to drive and one you get to appreciate more as the miles are racked up.

And while there's  a sensible layout plus plenty of comfort in the shape of soft leather seats and decent head and legroom, some of the interior plastics feel disappointingly brittle.

Cabin space is ample, and very comfortable, for four people - a centre rear passenger is slightly perched with legs either side of a wide transmission tunnel - and there's ample stowage for bottles and oddments.

The 18d features a 2.0-litre diesel engine with 143bhp of punch fed through an easy-shift six-speed manual transmission.

Given that the X1 is quite a heavy car, and tall with it, BMW's Efficient Dynamics technology comes into its own.

Using automatic stop-start to conserve fuel when the car comes to a halt plus a gearshift indicator to encourage economical driving, the car can officially return an average 54.3 miles per gallon.

My own calculation over 300 miles of mixed motorway and urban driving was just below the 50mpg mark.

Brake energy regeneration is a standard feature while active aerodynamics and low viscosity fluids help keep the CO2 emissions down to 136g/km, putting into Band E and an annual road tax of £110.