7D
aily Record, June 13, 2008R
OAD RECORDD
riven byNNEEWWSSmotoringFuelling demandFactfileModel:
BMW X5
Engine:
3.0d
and 3.0sd
F
uel economy:
3
4.9 and 34.4mpg
CO2emissions:
214 and 216g/km
Warranty:
Three
years/unlimited miles
Price:
16340,560
and 16342,740
On sale:
NowMORE than 90 per cent
of X5 buyers in the
UK choose diesels
.
And,knowing this,
BMW have worked har
d to
perfect their oil-burning units.Launched back in 1999, the X5 had
a revamp last year and it looks as
good as ever.
Among the engine line-up is the
world8217s most powerful production
six-cylinder
, twin-turbochar
ged,
3.0sd unit.
As w
ell as po
w
er
, the 3.0sd offers
fav
ourable fuel figures 8211 34.4mpg
on the combined cycle 8211 and CO2emissions of 216g/km 8211 not bad for a
vehicle of its size and class.
B
ut, always looking to impr
o
v
e
,
BMW then intr
oduced the 3.0d.
Offer
ing slightly better fuel figur
es
at 34.9mpg, emissions ar
e no
w do
wn
to 214g/km. Priced at 16340,560, the
3.0d is also cheaper than the 16342,740
3.0sd.
W
ith 235 horses under the bonnet,
it8217s reassuring to know that the power
of the 3.0d is backed up with strong
br
akes and cr
isp handling.
The X5
always feels stable and poised, thanks
to A
daptiv
e D
rive and Active Steering.
Longer and wider than the previous
model, the X5 can carry more passen-
gers 8211 ther
e
8217
s the option of seven seats
8211 and has a class-leading luggage
capacity
.
W
ith all the rear seats folded,
there8217s 1750 litres of space, with five
seats in place, 620 litres is available.
And even with the optional third row
of seats upright, there8217s still 200 litres
of luggage space
.
Clever engineering and the use of
lightw
eight metals keep the weight
do
wn and BMW hav
e achiev
ed
per
fect 50/50 weight distribution.
The car also looks mor
e muscular
than befor
e
, with fine looking allo
ys,
gr
eat lights front and back, and a nice
neat r
ear that featur
es twin exhausts
.
I
nside, comfort abounds. The seats
ar
e superb and the instr
uments and
contr
ols are typical BMW. The finish
and tr
im are excellent quality and
ther
e
8217
s plenty of sto
wage space
,
although the glo
vebox is smaller than
I expected.
The cabin featur
es a range of
technical delights for gadget enthusi
-
asts
, with a standar
d head-up display
which giv
es the driver information on
the windscr
een, meaning y
ou can
always keep y
our eyes on the road.
BMW
8217
s i-D
r
iv
e
has also been
added but it
8217s
the impr
o
v
ed
v
ersion and it is
now much
easier to access
y
our most
frequently-used
functions. A starter button replaces
the traditional turn of a key and there
is also a new electronic handbrake
which, surpr
isingly
, y
ou hav
e to
release manually when you move off.
A nicely shaped gear lever is
another new feature and the
electronics are handled by a system
which BMW calls FlexRay and allows
signals to be transmitted between the
v
ehicle
8217
s computers at gr
eat speed.
Another nice touch is the option of
a rearward facing camera
to make reversing easy
and parking sensors.
N
ew safety
features have
also been added,
including smart
brakes which dry
themselv
es in
the wet and
detect
emergencies
quicker.With BMW8217s
diesel engines
becoming more
efficient all the
time, JOHN
MURDOCH fully
understand
why so many
X5 owners
take to them82168216S
m
a
r
t

b
r
a
k
e
s

d
r
y

t
h
e
m
s
e
l
v
e
s

i
n

t
h
ew
e
t

a
n
d

d
e
t
e
c
t

e
m
e
r
g
e
n
c
i
e
s

q
u
i
c
k
e
rS
COTTISH driver Robin
L
iddell claimed a fine
s
econd place in last
week8217s Grand-Am GT
Championship race at
Watkins Glen.Co-driver Andrew Davis
started their Stevenson
Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R
from seventh place on the
2
6-car GT class grid, but were
soon in trouble.
8220The rear tyres blistered at
t
he beginning for Andrew so
that cost us a bit of time and
ultimately we lost a lap,8221
reflected Liddell.
8220We got a wave by past the
safety car during a caution
period which got us back on
the lead lap and two hours into
t
he race, we were in the lead.
8220
But then a larger Daytona
Prototype made contact with
the left rear, spinning me
around and losing us a
number of places.8221
Despite the collision, Davis
recovered to third place by
mid-distance and Liddell kept
up the pressure, moving up to
s
econd after four hours.
W
ith 30 minutes to run,
Liddell had slipped back to
third after his final pit-stop. But
following a final full course
yellow
, Liddell finally got past
Paul Edwards and into second
place with 12 minutes to go.
He couldn8217t reduce the gap on
eventual winner Jeff Segal.HarryFairbairnGlasgow
167 Fenwick Road, Giffnock, G46 6JB
0844 815 4325
A
yrshire
A
yrRoad, Irvine, KA12 8BZ
0
844 815 4347www.hfbmw.comBTCALLS 5p PER MINUTE, OTHER PROVIDERS MAYVARYAND MAYBE RECORDED FOR QUALITYOR TRAINING
PURPOSES. OFFERS SUBJECTTO STATUS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS. MODELS SHOWN FOR ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES ONLY.The new BMWX5 range, from 16340,605 on the road. Model shown is the 4.8i SE at16354,300 including optional 208221 alloy
wheels at163895, Sun protection glazing at163295, Aluminium running boards at163235 and Dynamic Package at1631,655. On the
road prices are based on manufacturer8217s recommended retail prices and include 3 yearBMWDealerWarranty, BMW
EmergencyService, 12 months road fund licence, vehicle firstregistration fee, delivery, numberplates and VAT. Prices are
correctattime ofgoing to press and subjectto change withoutnotice.
57377
Testdrive subjectto applicantstatus and availability.O
f
f
icial fuel economyfigures forthe new BMWX5 range: Extra Urban 39.2 8211 29.4 mpg (7.2-9.6 l/100km).
Urban 25.0 821116.1 mpg (11.3-17.5 l/100km). Combined 32.5- 22.6 mpg (8.7-12.5 l/100km).
CO2emissions 231-299 g/km.H
arryFairbairn
X
5The Ultimate
D
riving MachineCall us todayto arrange a testdrive57377and
discovera new level ofdriving pleasureTestdrive57377the BMWX5 atHarryFairbairn
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