BMW has refreshed its fourth-generation X5 SUV. As part of its mid-life facelift, it has received revisions to its exterior. Several enhancements have also been made to the overall user experience on the inside.

Originally unveiled back in 2018, the G05 X5 was first introduced locally back in 2019. It was launched with the same 3.0-litre Inline-six, but with about 30 less horsepowers.

The facelifted car also develops significantly more torque too. But not all the updates to the car improves the X5 breed.

What has Changed?

The LCI car gains slimmer headlights, as well as an all-new front bumper reminiscent of one off a BMW iX3. These changes assist in freshening up the front fascia. And there are also changes to the rear end of the vehicle too.

As you really can’t drastically alter the body in a cost-effective manner for a facelift, the physical dimensions of the tail lights appear to have not changed. However, changes to the light clusters themselves have brought the rear end to be more in line with the rest of the BMW lineup.

All-in-all, the updates work, and are necessary to keep the car competitive in an ever-growing segment.

New User Interface in the Cabin

The most obvious change to the pre-facelift car can be found in the X5’s interior. Gone is the split infotainment and instrument cluster configuration. In its place is a singular, curved housing with two digital displays.

A 14.9” unit sits atop the centre stack, and handles all of your entertainment and navigational needs. Driving data is displayed on a 12.3” screen that sits to the right of the infotainment unit. The introduction of this setup also means changes to the centre stack. Gone are the climate control buttons (they’ve been shifted to the digital screen), and BMW has also introduced new air conditioning vents to the car.

The gear shifter has also been redesigned, and is now a rocker switch instead of the bulky, traditional-style automatic shifter.

There shouldn’t be any significant change in the cabin space on offer, as the car has not grown physically. Head and knee room is great throughout the car, and the small transmission tunnel also makes longer trips as the middle passenger bearable. You’ll also find that there’s no shortage of USB ports in the vehicle, so everyone should be able to juice their devices up without having a literal power squabble.

One change that may not be popular with potential BMW X5 buyers is BMW’s decision to leave out the third row. This facelifted car is available locally strictly as a five seater.

An Un-SUV-like Drive

A high-riding SUV shouldn’t drive as well as the X5 does. It has suspension that nicely regulates its weight, and is just stiff enough that you do not get excessive body roll through the corners. Yet it still manages to soak up many of the imperfections on our roads, so ride comfort was never really a concern through our three day test drive.

The steering is fairly light, but feels decently responsive. A punchy turbocharged six-cylinder adds to that sense of agility. As mentioned above, BMW has squeezed out an extra, not-insignificant 30 bhp, with output now at 375 bhp. 

This is the same motor that you’d find in the front of a Toyota Supra. It clearly isn’t tuned for outright pace in this application. There’s still a wonderful tower of torque from very low in the rev range. Garnering speed isn’t an issue in this vehicle too, with it doing the century sprint in just 5.5 seconds.

And fans of blow-off valve (BOV) noises would also not be disappointed, as there’s an audible ‘whoosh’ when you lift off the throttle. Since the B58 is a very popular tuner engine at this point, it probably wouldn’t be very difficult to extract more noise from your BOV if that’s what you are looking for.

But down the line probably, as you wouldn’t want to risk voiding the warranty on your $500,000+ German SUV.

Robust and Confidence-Inspiring

The BMW X5 LCI feels legitimately solid and robust. There’s a sense of overall quality to the vehicle that inspires confidence in its long-term durability. It also drives very well, and isn’t all that inefficient considering the space and performance that you’re getting.

Competition in its class continues to heat up, and there are many compelling alternatives, both ICE and EVs, for a consumer to choose from. But the X5 has one trump card over all of its rivals – its B58 engine. Tuners have gotten it to develop over 1,000 bhp on stock engine internals, proving that the motor is ludicrously overbuilt and under-stressed. As such, it should prove to be a reliable daily (on the motor front) for years to come!

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