X5 New BMW E70 X5 official photos & info!

[Zafiro]

I like the ML but only the exterior. It comes on second place after X5. X5 trully is the missing king who returned.

 

[Merc1]

Yeah exterior wise it is close, but interior wise the X5 blows the ML away quite easily. Here in the U.S. base MLs come with such tiny wheels to the point they look awful. Only when specify the larger optional wheels or the AMG pack does the ML look "right", but even then the design just isn't as smooth or cohesive as the X5. Interior wise there is no contest, the BMW looks just one of their cars, whereas the ML doesn't have the design or quality of German build MBs.

M

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

X5 looks great and seems to be a truly worthy succesor.

It looks good on first site, and the interior looks to be the best finished from BMW's latest efforts, bar the 7. I don't see any major fault with the exterior design other than perhaps being a tiny bit too evolutionary. But who cares really when the final product looks so good.

 

[Merc1]

Yeah I think the design revolution is over at BMW when it comes to their bread and butter models like the 3 and X5. Now if this X6 is real it will likely be something radical looking.

M

 

[Imhotep Evil]

Yeah I think the design revolution is over at BMW when it comes to their bread and butter models like the 3 and X5. Now if this X6 is real it will likely be something radical looking.

M

Well that is true. The sales of the E38 and e39 7er and 5er were constantly going down after 1997; basicaly they took a beating from MB and even Audi (USA was the exception tough, but it wasn't enough).
So it was something like -what do we have to lose ?!-.
Thus the shock and awe design.
On the other hand the E46 3er and e53 X5 were more succesfull than BMW could imagine, thus the evolutionist aproach.

 

[Yperion]

There is a fine line between radical and boring and i think BMW has found it precisely with E92 and E70. Not very radical to scare away the customers but not boring either to disappoint the enthousiasts.

 

[klier]

ML is also nice (exterior design) but the interior of the X5 looks better made (from the photos) and that's a big surprise cause interiors were always BMW's weak point.

So overall for me X5 wins the ML.

Always? There are only a very few BMWs with quality that can be questioned: 1er, 5er and X3. Those might have been a little off. But please don't start with always. Audi has had a good quality cabin for maybe 5-7 years. Before that it was utter crap. BMW has always been very good. It's just that some Audi models have a higher quality interior today (A6 compared to 5er, 1er compared to A3). 3er and A4 are the same, 6er is better than all Audi's, 7er and A8 are about the same with maybe with a slight edge to Audi.

Anyways, looks like the below-expected interior quality is over again. The F01 will one up this E70 for sure.

 

[Sayyaaf]

PSed colors for this beauty

 

[bmwrules]

ZSG I was said in 335si in 2007.

What time during 2007? I'll be getting a 335 around April 2007 when my 545 lease is up. Would the ZSG be available in the USA by then?

 

[LaArtist]

that black is perfect..it hides the plastic parts..wich i really dont like

 

[Yperion]

Always? There are only a very few BMWs with quality that can be questioned: 1er, 5er and X3. Those might have been a little off. But please don't start with always. Audi has had a good quality cabin for maybe 5-7 years. Before that it was utter crap. BMW has always been very good. It's just that some Audi models have a higher quality interior today (A6 compared to 5er, 1er compared to A3). 3er and A4 are the same, 6er is better than all Audi's, 7er and A8 are about the same with maybe with a slight edge to Audi.

This is really off topic but Audi 80 had the best build quality in it's time and also i can't see 6 series to have better quality than A6. Even E90 has been said from many magazines to have worse quality than a designed 6 years ago Audi A4 interior.
It's true that new X5 seems to be very good indeed but i will wait until i see it in person.

 

[EnI]

What time during 2007? I'll be getting a 335 around April 2007 when my 545 lease is up. Would the ZSG be available in the USA by then?

I have no detailed info yet. But will come - do not worry.

 

[warot]

Yeah I think the design revolution is over at BMW when it comes to their bread and butter models like the 3 and X5. Now if this X6 is real it will likely be something radical looking.

M

That's exactly what Bangle said. He said that the revolution would start with the 7er (and look at the chaos that that created), but another one will start with the next generation. So it went from extreme to more and more conservative.

This X5 is just so beautiful.

 

[warot]

This is really off topic but Audi 80 had the best build quality in it's time and also i can't see 6 series to have better quality than A6. Even E90 has been said from many magazines to have worse quality than a designed 6 years ago Audi A4 interior.
It's true that new X5 seems to be very good indeed but i will wait until i see it in person.

Many magazines? Do you have sources?
I have never heard such crazy things. It's one thing not to like the design of the dashboard, but fit and finish is another thing. I'm not saying that it is as good as the A4, but worst than a 6 year old Audi interior is wrong.

 

[RikfromBelgium]

This is really off topic but Audi 80 had the best build quality in it's time and also i can't see 6 series to have better quality than A6. Even E90 has been said from many magazines to have worse quality than a designed 6 years ago Audi A4 interior.
It's true that new X5 seems to be very good indeed but i will wait until i see it in person.

and when Topgear magazine tested the 1 series after launch, they said interior quality is on par with audi A3. Quality is a difficult thing for magazines to be objective about. It also depends on how you dress it.

 

[klier]

This whole interior quality thing is never going to stop with the Audi fans...

...mainly because it is the only thing they can brag about

Back to the subject at hand though..... Will we see the 800+ Nm V8 diesel in the new X5? That would be killer....almost as much hp as the 4.8, but a *little* bit more torque

 

[EnI]

Back to the subject at hand though..... Will we see the 800+ Nm V8 diesel in the new X5? That would be killer....almost as much hp as the 4.8, but a *little* bit more torque

Yes. V8 diesel is coming. The well-known M67D44 4.4L one - with 330HP & 750Nm. Could be tuned a bit different in X5 (less HP, more torque).

It will hit showrooms with the other engines in March 2007.

 

[Sayyaaf]

EniLab: very nice .. thanx for the rich info

what's so special about the new gearbox ? and where is the side buttons that appeard in the spy shots ?

 

[EMpower]

Yes. V8 diesel is coming. The well-known M67D44 4.4L one - with 330HP & 750Nm. Could be tuned a bit different in X5 (less HP, more torque).

It will hit showrooms with the other engines in March 2007.

But when will it hit US market?

 

[EnI]

what's so special about the new gearbox ? and where is the side buttons that appeard in the spy shots ?

It's "just" an updated Steptronic (same as in new 3er coupe) with new torque converter and better softaware - providing much quicker & efficient shifting. But this time paired with futuristic electronic shifter.

The buttons / levers in X5: "Sport" (for sport mode of AdaptiveDrive - stiffer suspension setting), "P" (electronic parking brake; the P on shifter is Park mode) "Auto H" (Automatic Hold - is an automatic parking brake activiting everytime the car stops & deactivates when accelerator is pushed).

What the "Stau" (Traffic Jam) buttone in 5er is for I have no idea - IMO it is for activating "Stop/Start & Go" engine function which deactivates engine when car stops, and start it again when accelerator is pushed - to save gas).

Interesting thing - which is unknown to me is the "Auto H" button in 5er: meaning they are testing electronic brake in 5er too.


ZSG will come soon - initially in more sporty oriented models: replacing SMG type of gearbox on non-M. What I'm eager to see is whether ZSG will also be used in M3 - they are testing it: the M version. The testing results are very promising, but some leading engineers are complaining ZSG is too refined for a sports car like M3: not as raw as it should be. But marketing guys want refined things - because they attract more buyers: not only the aficionados. And that is very important in M3's biggest market: USA.

But when will it hit US market?

Diesels in US? Soon. Read THIS

But X5 with V8 diesel? I do not know? It's up too BMW NA decision & BMW AG approval. Because BMW, DCX & GM have together developed a 2-mode hybrid which will hit markets soon: so we can see vehicles like X5 & 7er Hybrids, while smaller lines (3er, 5er & X3) will get the I6 diesels. I really have hard times to get info about specific BMW NA plans. Europe is more of my domain.