BMW X3 Gets Muddy at New South African Off-Road Course

BMW South Africa is giving X3 owners a reason to leave the pavement behind. A new half-day off-road course at the BMW xDrive Park in Midrand, near Johannesburg, puts the latest X3 through steep climbs, water crossings, side slopes, and articulation obstacles. The program is part of the BMW M Driving Experience South Africa, though the park itself has been open since 2018.

The course is designed to show what the X3’s xDrive all-wheel drive and electronic aids, like Dynamic Stability Control and Hill Descent Control, can do when the road disappears. Participants also practice skid control and recovery situations. BMW calls the locally built X3 its “local hero,” since the G45 model is produced in South Africa, making it a fitting centerpiece over importing a larger SUV.

Sessions are capped at 10 people and cost R4,950 (about $306 USD). Finishers receive a certificate. The course joins existing South African offerings like Advanced Safety, M Advanced, and M Drift.

For American fans, the idea isn’t new. S. Performance Centers in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and the West Coast offer similar off-road time in X models before track sessions. BMW’s off-road tradition stretches back to 2000, when the original X5 tackled Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, followed by trips to Kenya, Namibia, and Botswana.

The new X3 course extends that legacy, and the photos prove the midsize SUV can handle far more than potholes and parking curbs.