INTERNATIONAL LAUNCH
BMW cranks up the tech as X5 goes bigger
BMW’s all-new X5 is more comfortable and more capable
BMW timed the launch of the original X5 to perfection. The market was ripe for an SUV-like vehicle without the off-roading paraphernalia that most SUVs owners didn’t really use anyway. BMW’s reward was 617,000 units in worldwide sales. Generation two and three were even more successful. X5 sales total more than 2.1-million units worldwide. But the time has come for version 3 to bow out, which is why I found myself in Atlanta, Georgia, US to sample, first-hand the new fourth-generation X5. The new model is immediately recognisable as the lead member of the X family (that is until the larger X7 arrives in 2019). It is 36mm longer, 66mm wider and 19mm taller than its predecessor. An extra 42mm has been added to the wheelbase. The shape retains proportions that go back to the progenitor of the family. The most interesting feature to grace the side view is a rising belt line that forms an "S" on the rear door and terminates in the tail lamps. The rear lights are slim, three dimensional a...
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