BMW is sprucing up its X5 SUV with range of cosmetic updates and engineering tweaks. Read on for our handy guide to how to spot the new 2010 X5 and what is new under the metal.
How will I tell the new 2010 X5 apart from the old one?
The headlamps on the X5 are new, the foglights move, air vents swell like a panting athlete’s nostrils and the front bumpers have more body colour and fins in matt aluminium trim.
Out back, new rear lights have BMW’s now-trademark LED lighting bars emphasising horizontal lines of the X5. A range of SUV-atypical 19in and 20in wheels provide a planted stance for Chelsea, if not China.
What’s new under the bonnet of the facelifted X5?
Eight-speed ZF automatic boxes are now standard across the board; their spread across the BMW range is endemic, in the quest for lower CO2 and higher mpg. The key new models at launch are:
• xDrive30d, 232bhp (up 10bhp), 398lb ft, 0-62mph in 7.6sec (half a second faster), 38.2mpg, 195g/km of CO2 (down from 217g/km)
• xDrive40d replaces the xDrive35d, 302bhp, 443lb ft, 0-62mph in 6.6sec, 37.7mpg, 198g/km (down from 220g/km)
• xDrive50i replaces the xDrive48i, 402bhp, 443lb ft, 0-62mph in 5.5sec (a second faster)
All new X5 models are equipped with nevada leather, Servotronic steering and other goodies. Prices start at £43,770 for an entry-level X5 xDrive30d SE – climbing to a stout £57,385 for an X5 xDrive50i M Sport.
Of course if that’s not enough, you can always go the full hog and order the bonkers £78k X5 M. Because you just know a 2.4-tonne SUV needs a 555bhp twin-turbo V8 capable of dispatching 62mph in 4.7 seconds. Or does it?