BMW has prepared its customers for its exotic i8 plug-in hybrid and pure electric i3 for several years now. But for more mainstream electric power appeal, it now plans to offer an electrically augmented SUV, the X5 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) it is about to reveal at the New York auto show.
The BMW Concept X5 eDrive uses a 95-hp electric motor sandwiched between the engine and the eight-speed automatic transmission in place of a conventional torque converter. Instead of BMW’s lineup of powerful six-cylinder engines found in other X5s, this one uses a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine, putting out 245 hp.
BMW claims a maximum electric range in E-mode of 15 to 20 miles, which it says will cover 80 percent of X5 drivers’ daily trips. It’s premature to rate the X5 PHEV’s fuel economy, but BMW says its target is 40 MPGe. If the idea of a plug-in hybrid SUV seems like ordering Diet Coke with your Whopper, remember that boosting fuel economy in a gas hog saves more fuel than squeezing every last drop out of an econobox.
Visit our guide to alternative fuels and vehicles.
![]()
The X5 eDrive’s big 9 kWh battery pack occupies the space where some X5s have their third-row seat, so the X5 PHEV will be available only as a five seater. The battery also raises the cargo floor about an inch higher than in other X5s. It adds about 500 pounds for a total of about 5,000 pounds, BMW says. With a conventional transmission, it will retain a towing capacity of 4,000 to 5,000 pounds.
The X5 eDrive uses a 3.3-kW onboard charger, which can fully recharge the battery on standard household 120v current in about eight hours, or about four hours using a 240-volt, Level 2 electric car charger.
The X5 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) has as many as nine driving modes; It has BMW’s now ubiquitous Sport, Comfort, and Eco Pro modes, which govern drivetrain and other performance parameters, as well as Normal, Max E-drive, and E-mode that govern the hybrid system.
In Comfort and Normal modes, the X5 eDrive operates like an ordinary hybrid, starting off on electric power up to as much as 42 mph, as long as you don’t dip too hard into the accelerator. Then it starts the gas engine to provide more power. Eco Pro mode and Max eDrive maximize fuel efficiency by boosting electric power. E-mode is for use in cities where internal combustion driving is not allowed or is superfluous, and it gives this X5 a top speed of about 74 mph in electric mode. It also offers a Save Battery mode, if you want to save a full battery charge for later use. In Sport mode, the electric drivetrain can’t power the car alone and is only used as a power booster, giving the car a total of 270 hp and 300 lb.-ft. of torque. Like other BMWs, the car reverts to Comfort mode with every restart.
![]()
Where topographic GPS mapping data is available in Europe, the drivetrain will adapt to upcoming terrain if you have a destination mapped. So it will drain the battery more climbing hills, if it knows there is a descent coming where it can recharge using regenerative braking. It is the first plug-in hybrid that will partially recharge the battery on the fly, when it strategically determines that doing so won't hurt fuel economy.
BMW emphasizes that the Concept X5 eDrive is a concept, but says it will definitely go into production and be launched “worldwide,” sometime after 2014. BMW representatives say to expect pricing in the neighborhood of a high-end X5, or between $70,000 and $80,000.
—Eric Evarts
Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers or sponsors on this website. Copyright © 2006-2014 Consumers Union of U.S.
