I always find traveling on business class to be something of a luxury.  For a Scrooge such as myself, any peso saved at the expense of comfort is acceptable.  However, as a car enthusiast, I don’t mind spending a couple of thousands just to get a better performing car.  That should make this trip extra special: while I find myself stretching my legs on the wide comfy seats, enjoying the complimentary Godiva chocolates; I’m counting the hours to my arrival at the ultra-exclusive Grand Resort Lagonissi in Greece.  For there it awaited: gleaming in all its galvanized steel glory, the all-new X5.  Life can’t get better than this.

A quick walk around the X5 made me notice that things don’t look to differently than before.  Was this a case of BMW management finally reeling in Chris Bangle’s wild designs?  Well no.  Making it look like the original was the actual challenge here: the all-new model is way larger than before, but despite its increased mass, the proportion looks nicely integrated and is visually balanced—even better than the first one.

Upon closer inspection, purposeful restraint is at work on the X5.  The face has been streamlined and smoothened for a more aerodynamic shape.  The “flame” creasing on the hood is made to continue onto the lamp clusters—a strong testament to BMW’s zero tolerance for panel gaps.  The kidney grille has been equally enlarged and curved.  It also serves as one of the few subdued variant identifiers: the 4.8i sports chrome vertical slats, while the 3.0d makes do with plain black.  At the side, a strong crease runs through the entire length of the side and along with the raked door angles make for a sleeker silhouette.  Usually the lumpiest area of any SUV, the back has been dealt with nicely on the X5.  The interplay of lines does a great job of masking the X5’s tall stature, and along with L-shaped tail lamps provides a distinctive rear end (especially when the horizontal LED park lamps light up at night).  The two-piece tailgate has been retained but features a soft-close mechanism similar to the ones on the doors of the 7 Series.

Inside, the X5 is still pretty much a driver-oriented automobile with clear marked and logically placed controls.  Visually, it takes on the family appearance with the twisting band motif.  Tactile plastics and impeccable build quality are already a given but the X5 offers much more.  For instance, the plush leather seats feature a 14-way electronic adjustment—and that’s not even founding the side and lumber supports.  The controls on the center console have been made touch sensitive too adding further to the X5’s feeling of modernity.

Speaking of modernity, whether you like it or not, iDrive makes its way onto the X5.  The single knob interface may confuse a newbie, but those already initiated with the 5 or 7 Series will find themselves at home.  This latest generation system though is equipped with 8 programmable short cut buttons in order to simplify frequently used iDrive commands.  An adjustable heads-up display makes onto the options list for the first time.

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