BMW X5 M: Seriously powerful practicality
Powerful SUV has more than 500 horsepower
Here’s the dilemma: given the option of choosing a quick SUV or a high-performance wagon, which makes more sense? And if opting for the former, shouldn’t said SUV look as outrageous as it is fast?
That was the question I wrestled with while doing a poor job resisting the urge to unpack all 567 horsepower in the 2015 BMW X5 M. Yes, you read that correctly — five hundred and sixty seven horsepower in something that will not just ferry young sons and daughters to soccer but have Porsche 911 drivers drooling with envy.
So powerful is the X5 M that it can seriously damage the tarmac under full throttle, despite xDrive divvying up power duties to all four wheels.
And not just off the line, when 100 km/h arrives in the gasp of 4.2 seconds, but when passing slower cars at 80 km/h.
In a blink, the X5 M goes from sedate highway crawler to law-enforcement pheromone with a simple tap of the right foot.
There is simply so much maximum torque trying to flee from the 4.4-litre twinturbo V-8 that the X5 M has a hard time keeping things in a straight line as it dispenses 553 pound-feet of muscle across a broad rpm band.
Sure, the xDrive all-wheeldrive system uses an electronically controlled, multiplate clutch to alter the torque distribution between the front and rear axles. And yes, torque is normally biased to the rear. But, depending on demand, as much as 100 per cent can go to the front or rear.
So even though the SUV wears some of the fattest tires on the market and it has one of the better AWD systems on the market, the raging power will make this SUV tug from right to left and back again as all that horsepower tries to escape.
It’s a little like trying to bottle thunder.
The best thing to do is hold tight to the heated leather steering wheel, correct course, and try to contain the fun.
But back to the initial question. Sure, the X5 M sits 10 mm lower than all other garden-variety X5s, wearing a face that is less frumped-up fascia than jaw of awe.
Replete with ducting and scoops and angry BMW LED headlamps and “corona rings,” it almost resembles something poised to run at Le Mans.
But the side profile and view from the rear leaves the X5 M looking no more troublesome than many of its benign brothers in the X5 stable.
The X6 M, on the other hand, which might not be everyone’s favourite bourbon and yet performs with pretty much the same urgency, has more outrageous proportions to match its ability.
The X5 M, however, even with gorgeous grey wheels to match its Donington Grey metallic, looks nothing like the great white shark that lives beneath its skin.
Managing this maneater of an engine is a new eightspeed Steptronic automatic transmission that shifts with satisfying immediacy in manual mode. The driver can also select a preferred shift pattern via DriveLogic, which allows for efficiency or sport modes that will be maintained when switching to manual. When paired with three more driving modes — Comfort, Sport and Sport+ — the X5 M allows for a wide range of behaviour. Want to track your M, or make the kids barf? Pick Sport+. Want to keep the kids from waking up? Stick with Comfort.
Remarkably, the personality between these modes varies widely, firming up the suspension, throttle and steering as you go up the scale.
In doing so, the differences make the M versatile, suited for more than just the hardcore driver in the family.
The steering, no matter what the setting, provides good feedback.
And with more cargo space in the back than a Porsche Cayenne, plus a split-folding tailgate and room under the cargo floor, there’s a whole lot of utility to go with the blissful performance.
There’s even 205 mm of ground clearance.
When not behaving badly, fuel economy was also respectable, beating the advertised highway rating with a best of 10.3 L/100 km at mostly 100 km/h.
Once inside, the Alcantara headliner and full Merino leather covering the seats, doors and dash in red and black, complemented by textured aluminum trim, cast an immediate spell over the driver. It not only looks seductive, it smells terrific. Merino is BMW’s top-grade leather, culled from cows with tuxedo-perfect hides and left in a more natural state so they can breathe and remain porous, allowing the leather to stay soft. Comparable to the finest glove leather, Merino not only wears well, it’s comfortable to sit on for hours. When stitched to the X5 M’s comfortable sport seats, which come with multiple adjustments but a weak attempt at ventilation (though the seat heaters are exceptionally good), the driving position is concours class. Perhaps this is all to be expected of a vehicle that rings in at $119,000 as tested.
Indeed, coupled with the excellent visibility that’s always been a hallmark of the X5, the M version delivers an IMAX experience, even before a finger is laid on the push-button ignition. The 600-watt, 16-speaker Harman Kardon sound system is sublime. The shifter, however overthought (the engine has to be shut off to engage P), is paired with lovely paddle shifters. The rest of the interior layout is typical of many new BMWs: conservative and uncluttered. The iDrive system, linked to a massive 10.25-inch LCD screen with the best graphics in the automotive universe, is not all that difficult to navigate after some use. The head-up display is particularly useful too.
Perhaps, then, the X5 M is a matter of wanting more outrageousness to go with such an outrageously fast and expensive vehicle.
Even the gnarly exhaust, somewhat hushed by the turbos but amplified by a button on the console, wouldn’t hurt from a few more decibels from the direct-injection V-8.
Yes, the X5 M has all the performance and luxury bases covered. The only question is whether the styling lives up to such an exhilarating drive.
Overview: High performance, mid-size luxury SUV that seats five Pros: Acceleration, braking, cornering, interior, driving feel Cons: Similar in look to X5s costing half as much Value for money: Given the abilities, good What I would change: Exterior styling, shifter How I would spec it: With premium package and full Merino leather