A friend asked what the letters “xi” on the back of the car meant. I held back on the urge to say “eleven” and gave him a serious answer. I told him that it delineates this as the all-wheel-drive model, something that was accomplished by the letters “ix” the last time BMW offered this option on the 3 Series.

If you’re looking for a sport wagon that runs like a rally car, check your Subaru dealer. The 325xi can’t help but have a level of sportiness – thanks to it being based on the 3 Series platform – but it seemed better suited to a weekend trip to the Alps or a winter in Denver.

This impression was reinforced the first time the car was put in reverse and the front wheels set at full lock. The increased weight and drag were immediately apparent, as was the slight lurching motion from the open differential all-wheel-drive system. This weight and drag were there in all driving modes, and made especially apparent by the fact that this car was preceded in the fleet by a two-wheel-drive model.

Had the weather been marked by multiple inches of snow rather than mostly sunny days in the low 60s, the 325xi might have fared better. However, the expectation of a BMW is such that the driving experience should be biased toward performance. Yet the impression was that this system is more adept at plowing through drifts and dealing with slippery slopes than adapting itself to roads both wet and dry.

The starting price of $31,250 is $1,750 more than the base 325i wagon. Adding leather ($1,450), metallic paint ($475), the cold weather package ($700), premium package ($2,700), automatic transmission ($1,275), park distance control ($350), bi-xenon headlights ($700), Harman-Kardon sound system ($675) and destination charge ($645) rocketed the price past $40,000. With vehicles like the Subaru Legacy (or Impreza WRX, which is about the same size) available for less, it’s difficult to justify this car, short of an overwhelming desire to own a BMW.