BMW's new X5 is here, with an electric iX5 for the first time
The fifth-generation BMW X5 comes with five types of drive, including the fully electric iX5. BMW has not yet announced a UAE price or showroom date.
BMW has revealed the fifth generation of the X5, its large SUV, and for the first time the range includes a fully electric version, the iX5. The car had its world premiere on 30 June at BMW's plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and BMW Group Middle East has since published the full press kit for the region. What it has not published yet is a UAE price or a date for showrooms here.
The new X5 is the first BMW launched with five types of drive. There are petrol and diesel versions with 48-volt mild hybrid help, two plug-in hybrids, the electric iX5 60 xDrive and, at a later stage, a hydrogen fuel cell model, the iX5 Hydrogen. The X5 40 xDrive uses a 3.0-litre straight six with 400 hp and 580 Nm and reaches 100 km/h in 5.3 seconds. The X5 40d xDrive diesel has 313 hp. The X5 50e xDrive plug-in hybrid has 489 hp and an electric range of 86 to 102 km on the WLTP test, and the X5 M60e xDrive, the sportiest of the range, has 612 hp and reaches 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds.
The iX5 60 xDrive has a motor on each axle, 578 hp and 805 Nm, and a 141 kWh battery built on BMW's new 800-volt technology. BMW quotes a WLTP range of 645 to 845 km, charging at up to 460 kW, and 10 to 80 percent in 23 minutes on a fast charger. BMW says all of these figures are still provisional.
The look changes more than in any recent X5. The front is taller and more upright, with a vertical kidney grille that lights up and new headlights drawn as a double X. The door handles are small winglets that sit flush with the side. Inside, the dashboard is wide and horizontal, with BMW Panoramic iDrive showing driving information across the bottom of the windscreen, a 3D head-up display and, for the first time in an X5, an optional screen for the front passenger. Slate and glass trims are offered, and wheels go up to 23 inches. The car is 4,994 mm long with a 3,035 mm wheelbase, and the boot of the petrol, diesel and electric versions holds 655 to 1,850 litres.
The X5 first appeared in 1999 and has been built at Spartanburg ever since. BMW set production of the new generation to start there in August 2026, and the iX5 is the first electric car to be made at the plant. At the premiere BMW also said it had completed a 1.7 billion dollar investment in the site.
BMW's own timetable puts the petrol and diesel models on sale from 28 November 2026, with the plug-in hybrids and the iX5 following in early 2027; orders for the electric and plug-in versions opened on 8 October. BMW Group Middle East has not yet said which versions the UAE will get, when they reach showrooms or what they will cost, and AGMC, BMW's Dubai dealer, has not posted details either. Prices seen on car listing websites are not official. Anyone planning to buy can ask AGMC in Dubai or Abu Dhabi Motors in the capital for updates; we will add the UAE price and date here once BMW confirms them.
