Yahoo Autos The New BMW X5 Plug-In Hybrid Is More Promising than the Old One
Hot on the heels of the debut of the all-new X5, BMW has revealed the plug-in-hybrid version of the redesigned SUV. The awkwardly named X5 xDrive45e iPerformance is only BMW's second attempt at a plug-in SUV, but with more power, more features, and a much longer EV range than the outgoing X5 xDrive40e, the new model looks to be a much more well-rounded proposition.
The new X5 xDrive45e is powered by a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six making 282 horsepower and an electric motor with an output of 112 horses; total system output is 389 horsepower, with maximum torque coming in at 443 lb-ft. That's a big jump from the current-gen X5 xDrive40e plug-in, which uses a turbocharged four-cylinder and has a combined output of 308 horsepower and 332 lb-ft. Both the gas engine and electric motor send their torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission and BMW's xDrive all-wheel-drive system. That means that whether driving on electric power alone, using only the gas engine, or both in combination, torque is always being sent to all four wheels. BMW claims that the xDrive45e will go from zero to 62 mph in 5.6 seconds, more than a second quicker than the outgoing car (we hit 60 mph in 6.2 seconds in our test of a 2016 X5 PHEV.) Top speed is 146 mph, while the electric-only top speed is 87 mph, up from 75 in the current model.
According to BMW, the new X5's lithium-ion battery pack has a larger capacity than the outgoing car's 9.2-kWh pack, but it doesn't give a size. Due to the battery's location under the cargo floor, the PHEV loses 5 cubic feet of cargo space compared to a standard X5. While BMW hasn't released EPA figures for the U.S. market yet, we expect an electric range of around 40 miles, almost three times the range of the current X5 plug-in.
The X5's biggest competition will come in the form of the Volvo XC90 T8. That plug-in hybrid, which uses a turbocharged and supercharged inline-four paired with two electric motors, has 400 horses, 472 lb-ft, and an EPA electric range of 19 miles. The xDrive45e also will go up against new plug-in versions of the Porsche Cayenne, Mercedes-Benz GLE, and Range Rover Sport, all of which should offer similar performance but shorter EV ranges.
Air springs will come as standard on every X5 xDrive45e, and rear-wheel steering will be optional. In addition to all of the standard features and options available on the regular X5, the xDrive45e will get "new digital services geared specifically towards electromobility," whatever that means. The mid-size, plug-in-hybrid, luxury-crossover segment has been growing in the past few years, but despite solely being built in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the X5 xDrive45e won't be going on sale in the United States until 2020-a year after it launches in Europe.
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