Triple X: X-citing, X-hilarating, X-cellent

When German carmaker BMW went into the lucrative sports utility vehicle (SUV) market, it carved a new niche with its X5 sports activity vehicle (SAV). It found enormous sales and critical success and received numerous awards for its innovative design and technology, including the distinction of being awarded a score of five stars in the Euro NCAP Test — the most stringent crash test any automobile can be subjected to. What’s BMW to do for an encore?

Well, speculations and anticipations about its successor can now be silenced. With a timing that can only be seen as good luck or good "feng shui", BMW Group Philippines unveiled the new 2004 BMW X5 during the Chinese New Year at the BMW Autohaus in Libis. Under the banner "exciting, exhilarating and excellent" and given the technical and visual innovations incorporated in the new vehicle, the leading luxury carmaker in the country claims confidently that the best just got better.

To improve on the original X5 involves a lot of work, but BMW pulled through with a host of several refinements that gave the new X5 a decisive edge over its predecessor and even its closest competitors. BMW finessed the new X5 with modernized central design elements, fitted it with a more powerful engine, harnessed the newfound power with a new intelligent four-wheel drive system and blended in the excellent handling and drive characteristics typical of a BMW, albeit with the ability to handle off-road driving situations.

According to BMW, the revised technical features of the new X5 provided the designers with a reason to further improve the vehicle’s visual appearance. This redesign has resulted in a certain sharpening of the X5’s character, making its enormous technical performance discreetly visible yet understated, in typical BMW fashion.

The front of the car has been completely revised right up to the A column. The relief design on the bonnet, characteristic of the BMW X models, has been clearly emphasized, and it now displays more dynamism, reflecting BMW’s new design language. The character lines in the bonnet are wider and higher and run into the BMW typical double kidney grille design. The kidney-shaped air inlets have also been enlarged, lending the X5 increased presence. The dual headlights have been given more dynamic external contours matching the more rounded indicator lamps. The designers have created an almost mystical night-style design through the incorporation of the new, illuminated corona rings surrounding the four headlamps. The front skirt section now has a more pronounced design. Its air inlets are larger and divided in the centre, representing a continuation of the character lines from the bonnet. At the rear, the new transparent glass lights harmonize perfectly with the fresh appearance of the new Bimmer.

The Teutonic understatement continues into the interior where the occupants are pampered by the latest in comfort technology. Leather seats, separate climate controls for the front passengers, and that German obsession with tight clearances and overall quality fit-and-finish all conspire to give the new X5 one of the most luxurious yet functional cabin to grace an SUV, er, SAV. It was noted that the new and improved iDrive (found in the new 5-series) is not present in the X5. But then again, who would really want to fiddle with that joystick and adjust the stereo when youíre busy driving at a fast clip through an almost uninhabited woodland area somewhere in the boondocks?

That last statement wouldn’t seem too far-fetched because the new BMW X5 3.0d is equipped with a revised in-line six-cylinder turbo-intercooled 24-valve diesel engine with second-generation common rail direct injection that can produce160kW (218bhp) and 500N-m of torque. This prodigious amount of power is transferred to a six-speed automatic gearbox and then sent to the xDrive intelligent four-wheel-drive system. The factory claims that the new X5 can accelerate to 100kph in 8.3 seconds and reach a top speed of 210kph yet consume only 8.6 litres of diesel per 100 kilometers (ECE Cycle).

The revolutionary xDrive intelligent four-wheel-drive system is a completely new design and sets new standards of road holding and agility among four-wheel drive vehicles. BMW claims that the xDrive reacts faster than other systems because it is able to "think" in advance. It makes use not only of the information obtained from the wheel sensors, but also data collected by the sensors of the Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) stabilization system as well to enable it to distribute the drive power ideally at any given moment between the two axles.

In a dynamic driving situation around a curve for instance, xDrive can significantly minimize understeering or oversteering tendencies while increasing agility and safety. With its fast reaction time, the new system can greatly improve road holding characteristics, as well as move down slippery surfaces or climb up steep hills with ease. It only takes a few milliseconds for the electronically controlled multi-disk clutch of the xDrive to redistribute the drive forces to the other wheels once friction is lost between a wheel and the road surface. The xDrive system has likewise raised active safety to a new level since it has reduced driving situations that were once regarded as critical.

With these improvements and innovations, BMW has endowed the new X5 3.0d with the muscle and finesse to clearly surpass its predecessor and continue to set the benchmark in its class. We’ll let you know how the new Bimmer drives once we at The STAR get our eager hands on one. If you can’t wait and you want to personally experience the new X5, call or visit the nearest authorized BMW dealer for details.