The X5 is the first ever 4x4 vehicle from the Bavarian carmaker. Priced at over half a million Ringgit in Malaysia, it is undeniably a luxury item and for an equivalent sum one can get a semi-d in a posh area like Puncak Bangi surrounded by a golf course, or buy 15 units of 2008 Proton Saga BLM, or just settle with an assortment of recond sport cars in your garage. As for us, we were either very lucky or God has decided to show us some Divine Loving in the form of test driving the second generation of this Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) from BMW - the latest e70 variant of the X5 3.0D that comes with a powerful straight-6 diesel engine and bolted with a turbocharger unit. Read the review below....
 

The BMW X5 is now in its 2nd generation. The 1st generation was introduced in 2000 as the world’s first Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) by BMW. Although the new generation of this very large 4x4 model was already launched in 2007, this spanking brand new 2008 model is fully equipped with recently-launched technology and performance upgrades making it livelier, more beefy and more lavish than before.

Exterior

We personally think our platinum bronze colored test unit was not as appealing as the one in alpine white but colors notwithstanding, the X5 remains one of the best looking and appealing SUV/SAV in the market. The new X5 body style is relatively identical with the previous X5 but more refined and modernized. It is much bigger than its predecessor with an additional 18.7cm in length and 6.1cm in width and stands tall at 1766mm, so you can’t really blame the X5 as it overshadows other cars on the road simply because of its majestic road presence than you would normally expect from a bimmer. Yes, it is a bigger, longer, wider and taller bimmer.

The front view is dominated by BMW’s branding signature: the double kidney grille. Not forgetting its self-leveling xenon adaptive headlights, of course. These are a pair of headlights that will make other heads turn literally as the headlights automatically “steer” and it works at all speeds in response to steering angle, vehicle speed and yaw rate.

A lateral view of the X5 doesn’t reveal much as it appears to be quite similar to the 1st generation of X5 but don’t get the idea wrong – it’s just a proof signifying the true workmanship of beauty that BMW vehicles are - the designs may have evolved but the ‘DNA’-inherited likeness can still be seen after 100 years. Similarly, the rear is almost the same with the previous generation albeit with a bit of a modern touch.

This test unit sits on a mammoth star spoke of 18x8.5 light alloy wheels wrapped with 225/55 continental contact SSR (Self Supporting Runflat Tyres) that has been further developed for more severe driving conditions which is more befitting of the versatile X5. However, as big as the 18-inch may look on the X5, we personally recommend a gargantuan 20-inch Y spoke light alloy wheels for a bit of aesthetical magic the Terato way.

Interior

This X5 may just be a 2nd generation baby but it is the first X5 that comes with third row seating. This feature is a very useful marketing gimmick - a seven seater BMW. We are not sure how often would the owner use them because the double seating can only accommodate two toddlers or two slender adults with the average height of 5 feet. It was a lot of work to gain entry to the rear seats too. Thankfully, the additional seats can be folded to give you back 620 liters luggage space as opposed to the 200 liters of luggage space when the X5 is in seven-seater mode.

Enough with the rear seats – let the much more comfortable second row seating amaze you with its larger knee room compared to the previous X5 that can easily accommodate three big sized adults (or even four). The front seats are comfortable and are second to none. Once you get into the driver’s seat or riding shotgun, appreciation for the seat designers will escape your mouth as you realize how wonderful the seats are. And nothing can spoil you more than these but the buttons for these electronically-adjustable seats to adjust your seating position with a mere push/pull of a 2-knob. The car doesn’t just look smart and feels smart. It IS smart – like an intelligent sentient life form, it will memorize the driver settings along with the positioning of the steering wheel and the side mirrors.

Inside the cabin amazement adores the designs of the dashboard, the futuristic gear lever, the smooth moonroof glider, the wider armrest, the two tier front air conditioning vents, the rear air cond blowers with split zone climate and all the other magical stuffs it has to offer. The only thing missing inside the car would be the kitchen sink. BWM, please don’t get any ideas.

Like Nasi Lemak is to damn-good-Sambal, the very unique glove box decorates the dashboard very well. At first glance, it would appear that there is no glove box available for the X5 but with the touch of a button at the left compartment, it will electronically open the 2-door storage compartment hidden behind the wooden trim of the dashboard. Closing the dashboard is a manual effort but no complains from us, there.

The X5’s gear console features faster-shifting six-speed steptronic transmission for quicker and smoother driving and is controlled by a newly designed gearstick: the Electric Transmission Selector. The gearstick works like a joystick - tap it down for a drive position and tap it upwards to shift into reverse. To park, just push the top button without any movement on the gearstick. The sports mode is selected by toggling the stick to the left. Nifty? You bet. But wait, there’s more - how about a button at the back center console as an electronic parking brake? X5 gives you that touch of simplicity in its grandeur, and delivers it like a poet on open mic night – smooth and flawless. Also fitted in as standard issue with the X5 is the distinctive iDrive that allows the driver and front-seat passenger easy control via a single controller knob located on the center console to navigate or browse through the LCD menu on the dashboard. Very easy to operate and very useful. Practical.

Driving experience

Driving a car with a massive torque of 520nm at a very low rpm range (from 2000 rpm till 2750 rpm) is undisputable. You will love it when the turbo kicks in as all 7 passengers will be glued to the seat. The 235bhp @ 4,000 rpm will sprint from 0-100km/h in only 8.3 sec (just 0.2 sec slower than the 3.0 petrol engine) and to make things more fascinating, you will actually forget that you are now driving a diesel powered car. It’s too quiet even at God-wrath speed (the car can clock 210kmh; electronically limited) but everything changes when you are stopping and winding down the window as you through that fast food drive-thru or while paying the toll. But with a ride fit for kings, coupled with its sport car acceleration, one can easily learn to forgive and forget the famous ‘knocking’ sounds made by the diesel engine. Although the engine is a 2,993cc mated to a turbocharger unit, the fuel consumption for 100km was an average 13.3 per liter (hasty and fuming driving styles). It’s like driving a speedy sports car with less fuel consumption thanks to its very obvious powerful yet economical power plant.

Ride choppiness is only noticeable on very bad road surfaces (i.e. off-road terrain) but since we were not too keen in looking for trouble, no 4x4 stunts were attempted during our test period. It’s already good the way it is. Checking out the previous press releases for the X5 shows that not many people has put the X5’s off-road capabilities to the test with the exception of the Hill Descent Control (HDC), featured on the 1st generation X5. It now comes as standard equipment on all new X5 units. The HDC allows the driver to negotiate down a steep hill with his foot completely off the brake and gas. We are of the opinion that the XDrive All Wheel Drive System has the capability to tackle any extreme driving conditions and even pull off some off-roading if the owner is a pirate of the 4x4 expedition (and filthy rich).

Stopping power is tremendous, thanks to the 348mm rotors (very huge) making the X5’s braking feel like a race car’s - it brakes when you want it to. We later found out that the car comes with the latest technologies from BMW with features such as the brake fade compensation, brake standby, brake drying, modulated abs function, Automatic Differential Brake (ADB-X), Electronic Brake Proportioning, antilock braking (ABS), cornering brake control, AND mated to the intelligent xDrive four-wheel-drive system making it the only SUV/SAV we are confident enough to use in Sepang.

With plenty of sweet, spice and everything nice, it was quite the surprise when the only beef we had with the X5 was how alighting from the rear seats seemed less user friendly compared to the front seats, seeing as how the rear passenger doors seemed a bit tight. Perhaps a 90-degree angle opening for the next generation X5 would do the trick?

Going back to other cars (say, a Proton Perdana or any other sedans - with the exception of the 7-series and the 5-series, of course), you know it’ll never be the same again after a one hour ride on the X5. With its marvelous ride and handling, you’ll probably send your Perdana back for repairs, only to find out nothing is broken. Think we’re kidding? We sent our 2005 Honda CR-V to the mechanic only to find out that we had what the car doctors said was ‘post-X5 withdrawal symptoms’. Take it or leave it, but for us one Backstreet Boys song aptly puts it with its song: ‘No One Else Comes Close’. Really, other cars just won’t be able to pull it off anymore.

Conclusion

In our humble opinion, the X5 is best suited for the A Class Contractor or equivalent where style and status is a concern while doing a site visit. If you are; a land developer or owner of acres of palm oil plantation lands, or renting out 3 bungalows, or have just acquired the Mini Cooper S Clubman, you may want to consider owning the X5 to substitute whatever you may have right now. Owning one automatically tags you as The Boss, a boss of all bosses, and it’s no wonder the tagline 'The Boss Is Back' was used during the BMW X5 launch in Kuala Lumpur early this year.

The car is priced at RM568,800 (personal registration without insurance).