The 2014-18 BMW X5 was a nice SUV — nice in the way a love interest tells you you’re nice before dumping you. It wasn’t offensive, but it didn’t go the extra mile to stand out among other luxury SUVs. And after the Swedes reset the mid-size luxury SUV benchmark with the 2016 Volvo XC90 — Cars.com’s Best of 2016 winner — “nice” simply doesn’t cut it anymore. For 2019, the BMW X5 is redesigned from the ground up, replacing a drab cabin with bold styling and adding more tech to the user experience as well as under the hood. 1,550), which mirrored our XC90’s rim size. The XC90 doesn’t ride objectionably poorly. It’s just that the X5 rolls over rough roads with a higher level of sophistication and road isolation. Where the XC90’s wheels flail over continuously broken road, the X5 remains poised and its ride reassuring, with minimal body movement. The engine and an updated eight-speed automatic transmission are a splendid complement. The prodigious torque matches well to intelligent transmission programming and smoother, faster shifts. The seamless gear changes approach dual-clutch levels of quickness. Less fun, though, is the X5’s handling.
Despite having summer tires wider than a BMW M4’s, the X5 I drove wasn’t the version with the most performance potential. 3,950) that includes the air suspension rather than the performance-oriented M Sport with M adaptive suspension. The standard suspension has adaptive, adjustable-firmness shock absorbers; the optional air suspension is more comfort-tuned and the only version I sampled. Its adjustable ride height can be raised up to 1.6 inches higher than the standard setting, and lowered 1.6 inches in the rear for easier cargo load-in. At faster than 86 mph, or in Sport mode, the X5 lowers 0.8 inch for better aerodynamics and a lower center of gravity. The X5 with this suspension competently handled corners but had noticeable body lean and gave the outside tires a workout. While quick, the steering is rather numb and isn’t very engaging. The soft steering dampens sporty driving, but it also makes the X5 a joy to drive as a comfy, cushy luxury SUV. 1,150), or rather, rear-steering where the rear wheels turn — in the opposite direction of the fronts to increase low-speed maneuverability, and in the same direction as the front wheels at higher speeds for quicker handling.
I didn’t think the X5 stood out in those areas or had a particularly small turning circle, but I also didn’t get to sample a car without the feature or with smaller wheels. The X5 I tested certainly isn’t the “Ultimate Handling Machine” as-equipped. Perhaps the sportier trims and options will enhance that, but it’s fair to say performance-oriented SUVs like the Porsche Cayenne and smaller Alfa Romeo Stelvio satisfy that craving more ubiquitously throughout their various trim levels and versions. These models have two rows of seats maximum versus the X5 with an available third row, which doesn’t go on sale until December. One area where Volvo can feel comfortably far enough ahead is on the semi-autonomous driving front. 1,700) includes Traffic Jam Assist with extended hands-off time and an automatic lane-change feature, like Tesla’s Auto Lane Change. I’d like to give these features a more thorough test because initially, they did not work well.
I don’t know if it was the roads of Atlanta or the car, but the X5 didn’t center well in its lane but bounced between the markings. The X5 followed the car ahead of me out of my lane, requiring action to take over so I also didn’t end up in the other lane, which at the time was occupied by another car. BMW’s technology has been well-executed in the 5 and 7 Series, which is why I want to give it a second chance. BMW previewed its new Off-Road Package by letting us slosh through a hilly and muddy off-road course winding through a Western Georgia hillside. While capable in this particular terrain, the off-road package doesn’t turn the X5 into a Jeep Wrangler. Its street tires aren’t especially grabby, and as on the street, the steering isn’t communicative, which made it challenging to find the ruts with traction when presented with a muddy trail. The experience, while completable, wasn’t confidence-inspiring, and there was a learning curve to ascending steep hills where I initially got stuck and had to back down to retry. New highlights abound on the inside that set the 2019 apart from the old X5.
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