German Car Zone

Beemer B773ER · 11-02-2006, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warot

I agree with Naruto. It's something that a family can use, therefore, for the mainstream market it is good. No one is going to say that having a 3rd row is bad.

I think Warot and Naruto make good points. No one is going to not buy the new X5 because it has the additional row of seats. If you don't want them there, then just fold them down. That 3rd row will however open up the X5 to more potential buyers. If you want 2-rows, then ofcourse there's the X3.

No matter how stereotypical the 'soccer mom' thing is, it's actually very true for the US market, so it was simple common sense to grow the X5 to cater to a larger market (and a very lucrative one at that!)

I'm wondering.. do you guys expect BMW to walk away with the SUV/SAV segment again ? .. or do the ML and Q7 actually have a fighting chance?

(Im refering only to the German brands, not all SUV makers in the market)

Even more interesting question to me... can BMW (with their new X5 and facelifted X3) give Lexus a run for their money in terms of SUV/SAV sales?

EMpower · 11-02-2006, 06:35 PM

Does anyone know when the "is" version of X5 will be out? What will be the engine specs? HP?

PanterroR · 11-14-2006, 04:15 AM

“Don’t think of it as a truck, think of it as a performance machine.”

Source: http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../61107002/1004

Ultimate Car Guy · 11-14-2006, 04:56 AM

Car magazine also has an excellent review on the X5:

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/first_d...sid=285&page=1

Centurion · 11-14-2006, 09:31 AM

That's one really beautiful engine bay.

warot · 11-14-2006, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luwalira

That's one really beautiful engine bay.

Yea can't see much of the engine itself, because of all the covers, but you can tell that they hired someone to design the bay. looks great and sounds even greater.

Imhotep Evil · 11-14-2006, 10:16 AM

Hmmm...could be rather...

warot · 11-14-2006, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ultimate Car Guy

Car magazine also has an excellent review on the X5:

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/first_d...sid=285&page=1

Never heard of this one, are they talking about ACC?
...and cruise control that detects bends in the road (via lateral acceleration sensors), slowing the car accordingly. ...

These are pretty funny:
Will double wishbones come to a 3-series in the future? “Only when such technology is required to keep our distance from the opposition”. Arrogance? No, confidence.

split tailgate remains; according to the German designer, ‘Americans like to sit on it and have trunk parties’.

EnI · 11-14-2006, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warot

Never heard of this one, are they talking about ACC?
...and cruise control that detects bends in the road (via lateral acceleration sensors), slowing the car accordingly. ...

Yep.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BMW Press

Cruise Control with brake function.

As an option, the new BMW X5 is also available with cruise control incorporating a special brake application function. The big advantage of this system is that it does not only maintain the speed preselected by the driver, but also reduces road speed whenever necessary under specific driving conditions.

Cutting in as of 30 km/h or 20 mph, cruise control with its brake function serves to maintain the speed preselected by the driver at all times, regardless of the route he is taking. To do this, the system either increases engine power automatically or, by cutting off engine power and shifting down the transmission, uses the brake force of the engine to reduce speed.

Should this reduction of speed not be sufficient, say, when driving downhill or towing a trailer, the system intervenes additionally in the brakes. This advanced system of cruise control complete with its brake function comes in addition with a Curve Speed Limiter reducing the speed of the vehicle in bends to a lower level than desired whenever this is necessary on account of dynamic driving conditions. To determine when this necessity arises, the Curve Speed Limiter covers lateral acceleration data provided by the sensors, adjusting the speed of the vehicle whenever driving conditions become critical. Then the Curve Speed Limiter accelerates the BMW X5 again to the desired speed when leaving the bend.

The driver masterminds the cruise control function by means of a stalk on the steering column. As soon as the vehicle reaches the minimum speed required of 30 km/h, therefore, all the driver has to do is pull or press the control stalk to adopt his current speed at the desired level and then change such speed whenever he wishes.

Cruise control with its brake function is deactivated either via the control stalk or by pressing down the brake pedal. Then, pressing the Resume button, the driver is able to activate the system again at the final speed saved in the system.

The Comfort Dynamic function enables the driver to use the control stalk for accelerating in the handgas mode, increasing the speed of the vehicle whenever he wishes in two dynamic stages and in an absolutely constant process, without pressing down the gas pedal.

NevadaJack · 11-14-2006, 02:03 PM

Been a long time since I owned a BMW (1998 Z3) but this new X5 is really impressive. I think with the driving features and the comfort features they have surpassed the ML. The interior is really impressive in the Tobacco/Black combination and I am not usually a fan of black interiors. They also have seemed to simplify the i-Drive setup. Nice job BMW

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