Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin



Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

Jonathan Gitlin

It's no secret that we're big fans of BMW's i3 and i8 hybrids here at Ars. Now the Bavarian company is starting to apply the technology found in those cars to the models in its regular production range, starting with the (deep breath) BMW X5 xDrive40e. There's no more funky styling and carbon fiber to distract you, just a good-old X5 with an up-to-date powertrain. The idea is to maintain the BMW driving experience but with an added dose of efficiency. So we put an X5 through its paces for a week to find out if that's the case.

BMW's decision to choose the X5 as its first "regular" model to hybridize was a smart one. The SUV is its second-best seller here in the US, and it stands to benefit from the electric vehicle treatment more than the cheaper, lighter 3 Series (although a plug-in hybrid version is coming, too). Under the hood is a 2.0 L, four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline internal combustion engine (ICE) and an electric motor, which together give the X5 a respectable 308ph (230kW) and 332lb-ft (450Nm). The batteries—9kWh of lithium-ion cells—live underneath the luggage compartment, an added bonus of the SUV's size and shape.

That power and torque gets fed to the road through the same eight-speed automatic gearbox as the rest of the X5 range. As with the i3 and i8, the X5 gives you three different modes: Comfort, Sport, and Eco Pro. You pick your mood and the electronic control units, and the clever software does the rest. Eco Pro is a bit of a hair shirt. It limits the energy drain from the climate control and seat heaters and lets the car coast with the ICE turned off. Both Eco Pro and Comfort let you drive on electric power alone as long as there's sufficient battery, with the ICE firing up and kicking in as needed (or above 75mph/120km/h).

As you'd expect, Sport keeps the engine running all the time, sharpens the throttle response, firms up the suspension damping and the steering, and the gearbox becomes less eager to shift up so quickly. The gearbox has a separate sport mode that you can engage by pulling to the left. This also lets you shift manually, although I would preferred some paddles behind the steering wheel for that.

There's also a separate eDrive button that alters the powertrain's behavior, from saving the battery and only running on gas, through an automatic mode where the electric motor is used to boost performance, to preferentially running in EV mode only as long as the batteries permit. And just to help you along, the X5's navigation app will factor in not just traffic but also topology and other information that it uses to maximize the efficiency of your trip.

From behind the wheel, it all works rather well. For such a heavy car (5,220lbs/2,367kg), it wears its weight well. OK, it doesn't quite feel several hundred pounds lighter than it is—a trick the i8 pulls off—but having the electric motor's 184ft-lbs (250Nm) of torque available instantly does a lot to disguise the X5's mass. It's also rather cool taking off from a standstill—even briskly—and seeing the rev counter needle stay fixed at zero, a sensation accompanied by the traditional EV lack of noise.

Being a BMW, you can hustle the X5 about like a hot hatch and it will happily oblige. But as an engaging drive, it's let down a bit by a few issues. The electromechanical steering is inert, offering very little clue as to what the front wheels are actually doing. This is becoming a regular complaint of modern cars, which are abandoning the old hydraulic power steering systems of yore, throwing steering feel out with them. Then there's the fact that the seats don't grip you that well, and finally there's no escaping the fact that the center of gravity is still SUV-appropriate.

Specs at a glance: 2016 BMW X5 xDrive40e Body type 5-door hatchback Layout Front engine, permanent all-wheel drive Powertrain 2.0L turbocharged 4-cylinder gasoline engine, hybrid synchronous electric motor/generator unit Transmission Eight-speed Steptronic transmission, permanent torque vectoring to all four wheels Horsepower 308hp Torque 332lb-ft Suspension Front: Double track control arm with double joint principle,

small, negative steering roll radius, anti-dive

Rear: Integral-IV rear axle, spatial suspension with anti-squat and anti-dive,

air suspension with automatic self-levelling Tires 255/55 R18 Top speed 130mph (75mph on electric power) Fuel economy (combined) 24mpg Weight 5,220lb (2,367kg) Wheelbase 115.5in (2,933mm) Dimensions 192.4in (4,886mm) x 76.3in (1,938mm) x 69.4in (1,762mm) (LWH) Base price $62,100 Price as tested $67,345 Options added Glacier Silver Metallic paint, Cold Weather Package, Premium Package, Rear view camera, Smartphone Integration

Rather, I found my preferred driving style in the X5 was to relax and enjoy running it on battery power as much possible. When I did succumb to the temptation of a lead foot, it was in the knowledge that the hybrid system was there alongside, gathering up any wasted or excess energy and storing it for later, making short trips to the grocery store and back possible without the ICE firing up once. BMW says that the xDrive40e will do up to 19 miles on battery power alone, but this will drop if you floor it or want to cruise at 70mph.

Besides, the interior is a nice place to spend time; slightly longer, more sedate journeys just mean more time to experience it. The ergonomics from the driver's seat are good, the view is suitably commanding, and because of the massive glass sunroof, there's plenty of light. I was also quite charmed by the wood finish in the car, which looks and feels almost like driftwood. The back seats are roomy enough for three adults, and although the cargo space is diminished compared to the xDrive40e's non-electric siblings, there's still a lot of room back there (17.7 cubic feet/500L with the seats up).

You won't have to pay too much of a premium over the conventionally powered X5s to pick up an X5 xDrive40e. MSRP starts at $62,100, but it qualifies for a $4,668 federal tax credit, bringing the price in line with the diesel-powered xDrive35d and the gasoline-engined xDrive35i. And unlike BMWs of old, you won't need to spend a fortune adding options, either. Heated seats and steering wheel are yours for $550, and you could probably live without the $2,500 Premium Package that gets you four-zone climate control, keyless entry, and satellite radio.

So the X5 is as practical as its ICE siblings, costs about the same, and it's about as quick, barring the fire-breathing 445hp xDrive50i. But was it parsimonious with the petrol? Unfortunately, not particularly. Although the SUV gets a combined EPA rating of 24mpg, in over 200-odd miles, I couldn't do better than 22.2 mpg as an average. No doubt this could have been helped by charging it overnight, something our DC road test HQ isn't equipped to do. Like most plug-in hybrids, it makes the most amount of sense if you have a place to plug it in, obviously. Driven the same way, the gasoline X5 xDrive35i would probably only see about 18 or 19mpg, although that's something we've yet to test.

Even so, the X5 xDrive40e managed to be at least as efficient as my regular car (a 2005 Saab 9-2x), despite weighing a great deal more and having almost an extra 100hp. A commute from downtown DC to Herndon and back again (22 miles each way) in sport mode was sufficient to charge the battery from zero to 50 percent, and electric vehicle chargers are becoming common enough now that shopping errands are also a good way to top up those electron tanks. It's also nice to know that the hybrid system is recapturing wasted energy here and there, which you can save up and use for short errands, gliding along in a feeling of almost-smug satisfaction. All in all, BMW's X5 hybrid charmed us more than we were expecting.

Listing image by Jonathan Gitlin