BMW’s design team likely had an easy time updating the look of the G05 BMW X5 and its high-performance variant, the BMW X5 M. Both the standard X5 and X5 M are already great looking cars that still look fresh, even as newer competitors have hit the market. So the design team probably just whipped up a quick facelift and went to lunch. Beer and schnitzel, anyone? Whatever they did, the BMW X5 M LCI facelift was just caught doing some camouflaged testing and, as expected, the updates are minimal but effective. (We don’t own the spy photos but they can be seen here)
Jokes about updating the design being easy aside, the BMW X5 M LCI facelift looks good so far. The changes are minimal, as the car already looked great, so don’t fix what ain’t broke, but BMW’s design team seems to have done a good job. The grille has been changed, given a more angular look that more closely resembles its sibling, the X6 M. Its headlights are also slimmer than before, similar to those seen on the new BMW iX.
Out back, the taillights look mostly the same but have more dimension and depth to them, similar to what BMW did with the new X3 and X4. It’s a cool look on those two cars, so we’re assuming it will look good on the X5.
It will be interesting to see what sort of changes BMW made to the interior. It’s likely to get some updates inside but how far will BMW go? Does the X5 M get the new curved iDrive/gauge cluster screen as the BMW iX? I’m not sure but it will be interesting to find out, as the X5 M’s cabin is already so good, it doesn’t really need much changing.
Power and performance will likely remain the same. Expect the same 4.4 liter twin-turbo V8, making 600 horsepower (617 horsepower in Competition spec) and 553 lb-ft of torque. However, it should be cherished, as this will likely be the last purely internal combustion BMW X5 M ever made. The next one will either be a hybrid, likely borrowing a version of the XM’s powertrian, or fully electric. So changes might be subtle but BMW is going to be making huge changes soon, so subtle works for right now.
[Source: Auto Express]
