The first snow of the season usually signals that it's time for those fortunate enough to take ski vacations to call in some vacation days, load up the car, and head towards the nearest mountain with the white powdery stuff. For automakers, the opposite is true because the snow means that it's the beginning of the winter testing season. BMW chose this time of year to test out its brand new X2 SUV, which, as the X in its name implies, must be suitable for driving around in unfavorable conditions.

Our spy photographers endured the cold to bring these images back to us and unfortunately they only prove that BMW's X2 design concept will remain just that, a concept. Not all is lost though, especially because the updates that BMW made to the X1 in order to derive the X2 are noticeable. Intended as the sportier of the two picks, the X2 has upside down kidney grilles up front, much like on the X2 concept, to delineate itself from the rest of the lineup. While it's built on the same platform as the X1, 2 Series Active Tourer, and Mini Clubman, the X2 will be the sportiest member of the family. To achieve the look, BMW lowered the roof line to make the X2 look wider without using the space-sacrificing coupe-like roof lines of the X4 and X6.

Like the X1, the X2 can be had with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, and despite sharing many components, the X2 will likely be more stiffly sprung and engaging to drive than its utility-minded sibling. The X1 proved to BMW purists that the brand was able to make a fun and engaging FWD car, but not everyone liked the crossover's styling. The X2 is an attempt to make the smaller end of the X lineup more appealing to young urban car buyers. If lady luck is with us, we'll see a range-topping X2 M come out along with the usual crop of gasoline and diesel engines. Thanks to BMW's new go green mandate, we can rest easy knowing a plug-in hybrid variant will follow.