The BMW X5 Story

The mid-90s was a seminal time for BMW. They’d returned to Formula 1 in 1998 with Williams, and with their help they would win the 1999 24 hours of Le Mans. They’d purchased both Rover and Land Rover to turn BMW into a large volume car manufacturer. The new MINI and Rover 75 would revitalise that company, or so they thought, and the Freelander and new Range Rover would take Land Rover to the next level.
But the BMW brand wasn’t going to be left out. The X5 would be BMW’s first entry into the 4x4 SUV category. So how did customers react to one of the first unibody SUVs, and what’s happened in the last 20 years to get us to today’s ginormously kidney grilled X5?

#bigcar

[THE_Michael_Westen]

1st gen X5 still looks the best in my opinion.

[kobbetop]

Frank Stephenson is a great car designer, there’s a lot of thought in everything he has done. He explains the design process of the X5 (and other interesting cars also) on his Youtube channel, very interesting stuff. Despite all the success he has had, he comes across as a very down to earth guy. 👍

[bishopworks]

With so many quality documentaries on this channel, I am shocked you haven't even broke the 100k subscriber mark.

[reklama_cja]

My parents got an E53 3.0 (and with LPG from Prinz!) for a quite long time and it was a good car... until dad was deciding what to do about repairs
- The power steering has broken and it was “no biggie”, mom still could handle it because she got a enough strength for parking or turning from intersections thanks to chopping wood occasionally. It was fixed after 3 years
- The gears on the back differential cracked and they have to be welded because we couldn’t find that part anywhere in whole Poland (because apparently nobody sane import a Petrol BMW here, get diesel or get out)
- the radiator fan has broken and dad had to choose: New part for 400zł/approx 80 pounds and car will be ready in the week or wait for the used for 200zł/approx 40 pounds. Guess who’s waited 6 weeks for a part?
- Computer constantly got errors because battery was pretty old and run down often. It was big, bulky and it was under wheel/lpg tank cover so charging it was a breeze (of sweat). Guess who’s brought the used battery and got an encore year later
- The LPG installation was Dutch so we have to use the converter (that afterwards could act as Wunderbaum Fresh Gas Leakage”)
- there were dvds on the headrests. Never used because it was a mess to get them working
- there was a tv too but there was analogue switchover so also unusable
- there was gps but ui wasn’t polish (and maps weren’t full coverage)

Basically it was a lovely car (or Cheslea tractor) if you don’t get stingy on repairs.

[davidlewis]

Cracked me up with the squeezy cheezy chocolate skit!

[Kessler]

The first gen X5 is one of my absolute favourite BMWs and this video was so interesting! Another beautifully presented and thoroughly researched video exploring the evolution of a key vehicle within the brand's history - your channel is such a gold mine for automotive info, you seriously deserve more subscribers

[ahmedalsadik]

A car made for our time: looks like something it’s not, marketed to royalty but purchased by yobs, can be driven by both the pimp, the escort and the client.

[Tlhakxza]

BMW X5 4.8is will forever remain the greatest X5 EVER!! Those quad pipes sounded so beautifully👌🏿

[aston-martin-internationalist]

Wonderful video as always, very interested despite absolutely HATING SUVs and crossovers.

[novemberbreed]

Love the look of the 2nd generation for both the X5 and the X3. The ones that came afterwards became too large with no interior space gain and they also destroyed the dashboard look.

[rab]

As someone who has an x5 since 2003 this is one of the best and most interesting videos I've seen on this channel

[davidlewis]

I would love a 7 series video. My dad had the E23. In love with them ever since x

[wasdwasdwwasd]

Being in a family who’ve owned all generations one thing that strikes me is how much the fit and finish and interior have improved from the first gen to the fourth.

[fleuger]

I ordered a 2002 BMW X5 3.0 with a manual. It was my first luxury vehicles and I loved it. It handled like a 5-series and with the manual is was so much fun to drive. It was very reliable. I lived in Boston when I owned this and the AWD system was not the best, I got stuck in the snow twice. More aggressive tires would have helped but it was a road going car. I still have tons of pics of my X5 and loved this vehicle.

[tahas]

Genuinely waiting for a video to come out

[Anthony-qhxv]

Great video! I appreciate you making this. I have a Bright red F26 myself, But I have always loved the X5!

[harindukalanaka]

WOW !!! Clear as crystal. Great work sir keep it up 👍

[LiamE]

Sitting up higher makes people feel safer. Physics is not intuitive for many people.

[wilfamos]

The best thing about the BMW X5, is this amazing Big Car video. Brilliant film about a gauche car, that has everything including an Oscar Widle quote!

[jfm]

When I was a little kid (mid 2000s) my doctor drove an X5. Back then the word SUV wasn't even known here in the hillbilly part of Germany.
Good times. I'm a sedan guy.