Yes the psychology of the situation was evident. The German accent mockery was the best part of the video. I wonder if BMW gave him a cookie for being a good Roman because he sure didn't seem like he wanted to comply with their strictness.
Toyota is doing the same crap with their RAV4 TRD Off Road iteration. It's going to be comical when the lawsuits start rolling in for these deceptive marketing practices.
Mr Economist >>> I'm with you. That's not much of an offroad course, we call things like that "our driveway" ;-) About 20 yrs ago my father had a slightly raised Fiat 124 ???Miafori??? with a bull bumper (they used vehicles like these in that particular area) and I swear that that little 1960s Fiat could out maneuver the fancy-pants Beamer any day of the week even with it's 40hp engine. This vehicle had power nothing, and it had a manual choke. But, this vehicle was indestructible. It went places you'd worry to take your Land Rover/Cruiser/etc!
They *mostly* did Goldmine Hill. 2/3 stages attempted. And they used an X3 on the hill, not the X5. Is the X5 that much more capable? That's a good question. But I'll give the X3 some due, it performed very well for a station wagon that does crossfit.
I helped push an x5 out of the parking lot at alta two weeks ago. We were in my wife's rx350 and drove out the same hill no problem. And it's basically a minivan without sliding doors. X5 lol.
@Peder Hansen An x5 off road. Lol. That's cute. You mean like a speed bump at the mall? They have the same ground clearance as an RX350. Not much. The RX has a locking center diff and torque vectoring, so it's generally better. But not a lot. They're both minivans at heart. At least the lexus is reliable. The BMW... no so much.
@Peder Hansen I think a lexus beats a BMW just by not breaking down. I think an LX570 pretty easily runs circles around any BMW that's ever been made being a land cruiser. I have an rx, 4runner, and land cruiser. Obviously the 4runner and land cruiser are in a different league. The RX and BMW being crossover cars are most similar to compare. And side by side I've personally seen better performance in the RX. I'll link a video.
Smoothest “offroad” road I’ve ever seen. Hats off to whoever was running the compactor 😂. You looked like you wanted this assignment over with as soon as possible 😂.
Ammar Malik >>> ... or when you accidentally spill a fresh bag of kitty litter on the driveway and you're worried your car may not make it over that little mound, X5 to the rescue! ;-))
It’s obviously not an off roader. BMW doesn’t make those types of vehicles. Xdrive is great in the snow though and these are great commuters. I have a 2017 X3 and I love it. I would never take it beyond a dirt road though.
It's just a marketing gimmick like a lot of other things these days, to be fair though most vehicles are a LOT more capable offroad than people think they are. Not saying you should get an x5 if you want to offroad. but it's nice that IF you own one you can take it on some gravel roads etc for camping. and it won't let you down as long as you know its limits.
Vince Clark >>> That's a little harshly put, but essentially I can't disagree with you because you're right. It is for "casual" off-roading, which means when So Cal bottle-blonde ditzy gal Val has stayed too late and valet service has gone home, but she ... together with her purse-pooch Fifi ... nevertheless finds the Beamer parked on the grass she'll be able to overcome this overwhelming obstacle of driving on 3" high trimmed Beverly Hills grass thanks to the Beamers "advanced" off road system. And if they are to encounter a very dangerous old school water sprinkler she can raise the clearance height of the vehicle thanks to the amazing air suspension. Danke BMW! ;-)
@@tmwall25 I couldn't completely watch the video, but where does he mention a locking diff? At the beginning he literally said that it "has none of that". And BTW the Grand Cherokee has a proper transfer case in all trims exept the Laredo I think.
They didn’t have one with the “off-road package” there, it has a locking rear diff. Would be nice if you would mention that it is available. Thanks for the video.
Lol, BMW, "Look, our SUV can go through puddles and go up dirt hills! We've built an off-roading machine!" 😂 This is still a pavement queen through and through.
Nothing more telling than when a manufacturer lets you test their vehicle on a track THEY designed lol. "Don't take it in the woods... it'll get stuck. But how AWESOME is it on our custom course that we made specifically for this car."
Contrary to 95% of the comments, I found this pretty beneficial. I’ll never be going to Moab or any intense overlanding situations, but I’m an avid rock climber where most destinations involve driving on steep, washed out service roads in the middle of nowhere. I figured the new Honda Passport would be ideal as I’d be looking for a weekday daily/weekend soft off roader that can carry four adults with all their gear, but for the price I figure I could get a slightly older luxury SUV with some soft off road capabilities to have the whole, “cake and eat it too,” set up. Not sure how the older X5’s fared, but this certainly got me thinking. Any other vehicle suggestions would be appreciated, currently my break down is: AWD or 4x4, no CVTs, two row, 6ft of flat storage with the seats down, modern safety, and can tow at least 5,000 lb. Currently the list is: - Honda Passport - Jeep GC Trailhawk - older BMW X5? - some sort of Mercedes-Benz SUV? - a well maintained Tuareg? - pre-CVT Subaru Forester? Any feedback would be great, I know it’s a pretty specific search. Hopefully this isn’t too toxic of a comment, haha
I ended up finding a steal of a deal on a 2019 X5 with the Off-Road Package that I picked up. So far I’ve taken it rock climbing eight times through all manner of washed out service roads and it’s performed flawlessly. It does everything I’ve needed it to and then some.
Why doesn’t BMW just make a good reliable car that you can drive for a longtime that won’t hurt your pocket. That is not an off-road vehicle. Stick to just making a good road reliable vehicle first.
I agree. As a fairly happy '12 335i 6MT owner, I understand that BMW has to take advantage of the current SUV craze, but they need to stick to their lane. Which is, just build great performing vehicles, that's it. I wish they would take some of the tech & plastic out of their vehicles and concentrate a little more on reliability, but look at my screen name. I like my car and I know the pros/cons of owning a BMW, but they need to stop putting money/marketing into things that are pointless, like an off-road worthy BMW.
Planned Obsolescence I agree. Ford makes pickup trucks to last five years then they fall apart. The AC compressor on my truck has been replaced twice. The truck only has 50k on the clock. The leather is starting to rip and it’s aging really bad. I have rust already in a lot of places. This will be the last FORD product I buy.
travelingThrew I had a bmw 5 series last me over 200 k miles they are reliable you just gotta take care of them yes the are expensive to maintain but if you know how to work on them you save a tun of money in labor and if you don’t know how to then they expect someone buying a 30 to 120 thousand vehicles to be able to afford the maintenance
Reminds me of the Outback review Nathan and Andre did back in like 2015 where they drove through Gold Hill, and were remarking on all the Jeeps and Subarus they were seeing in town, and then Andre says "And an X5," and Nathan says "Yeah that's a tourist."
That car is strictly for cabin roads only. My cabin road is exactly like that purpose-built test track, and my son made it easily with a -82 rwd Ford Taunus, (not Taurus). so, it kind of has off road capability of 80:s full size rwd car if American view is used. Air suspensions just break, that is the sorry fact, but in the winter they have one good use: When the car gets hung on the snow by the belly, lowering the suspension and compacting the snow may get the car free once the suspension is raised again. The correct way to test unibody rigidity is to open the rear hatch; the twisting effect is trying to deform the hatch opening, not necessarily door openings in wagon type cars. Any serious off roader has at least rear locker. The traction control by braking will overheat brakes in certain situations and actually turn them into mix of pottery and metal, and of course that will be expensive.I think those last H1:s had a timer for that? Anyway, Roman was admirably polite when judging the Bimmer. But we can, and will, read between the lines...
I took my X5 on several trails in Moab and I was on Pirelli Scorpions there too :) I go with a buddy who has a heavily modified XJ and I went everywhere that he did.
Rick Harris I know you're telling the truth because I use my X3 regularly in dire off-road circumstances here in Africa. However, for all the other contributors (naysayers), your post is inconvenient (chuckle).
The X5 is NOT an off-roader. But I like it for the niche it was designed for: it's comfortable and capable on-road, has decent cargo capacity, is okay for light snow & ice and it's fine for non-demanding car camping. That covers all of the driving conditions the typical owner is likely to see.
Genuinely asking what vehicle does bmw even have that’s off-road. They just care about street performance. They have too many models to not have a proper and reliable off road suv
@@nameunko I got it. they paid me nothing but the truth is they paid for a plane ticket and all accommodations while he was there. That is getting paid. And in return if you want manufactures to keep up giving you freebies, it's best to say nice things about the brand.
i believe this will be not as good as the old jeep CJ7 / YJ , land rover defender , toyota fj40 or daihatsu taft , or a mini jeep called suzuki samurai/katana in the real offroad arena
LOL. I live in Wyoming near Medicine Bow, we have true off-road trails, not that smooth little dirt hill. that thing would never survive it. Your bumper, oil pan, and a number of other things would be MIA.
I think many people just see “status symbol” and discount its ability because of it. However, if price is irrelevant, the X5 has awesome 4WD! Power is naturally rear biased for sports car feel until traction is lost there. The system can then send 100% of its torque to either axle and then it also supports torque vectoring. It’s a far more intelligent and predictive system than say a Subaru Outback.
It must be parked next to my Toyota which is under two recalls and just had the intake manifold replaced due to build up in the EGR system that was found after it was taken in for another recall to fix a rough engine. I picked up the Toyota driver in my six year old BMW which has had NO recalls. Piece of crap.
@@dcolavecchio LOL..... not the Toyota!! I was stupid and trying to show off by buying the bmw. I think you're just unlucky. I hope it works out for you brother.
@@wogahboy Thanks. Just saying any car can be good or a lemon. I've had pretty good luck with BMW. Now my bad luck with Honda/Acura......not enough time for those stories, but four words cover the worst issue "replace transmissions many times". Hope your next car is a good one.
I’m fairly confident I could get my WRX though that course but considering the folk that buy a new BMW X5 I think this course does a good job at demonstrating that you can also drive this vehicle on other surfaces besides asphalt. Nothing wrong with this, I enjoyed the content as usual.
As soon as you see it’s the manufacturer of the vehicle being tested who has set up the ‘off road’ course, you know it’s a waste of time! Parking assist not disabled automatically in ‘off road’ modes?
Just curious. Is BMW X-Drive like Jeep Selec-Trac in 4H Auto ? Rear-Wheel based AWD. When the front tire starts to spin, and then the transfer case engaged and transmitted power to the front axle.
Oh guys - BMW is not selling that as Hardcore Rock Crawler. It`s not a Truck, its a normal SUV (as all LandRovers are now too) which can go Off the road. SUV means Sport Utility Vehicle and that description fits perfectly. The course shows on small rented ground which angles it can do, the chassis is stiff enough, that you can go to a decent puddle and that`s it. - When they would sell it as real 4x4 they would be nuts and we could all laugh about it, but they dont claim that. What was shown here on the little parking place course was already more than 95% of the owners would ever do. Nobody even needs that kind of ability. - Not to forget: Nobody who will go overlanding or real offroading will ever consider to buy a SUV for the Job. They go for Pickups or real Offroaders like Landcruiser, G Wagon, old Defender or a Jeep.
A B D's: Approach angle sucks, Breakover angle sucks, Departure angle sucks. You would only yourself and loved ones in danger with this unibody car if you take it off road. TFL, i know you want the car companies to provide you with "influencer" loans, but this is rediculous.
That’s a dirt road with a gravel based water puddle. Friend of mine has been driving an X5 for years and while it’s great on dry and wet streets, it sucks on everything else... his even gets stuck on flat ground in just 4-5” of snow because it’s an AWD system tuned for performance.
Its all about the tires. I had a car with summer tires that would get stuck in wet grass (damp grass actually) but was a beast on warm dry roads. Run dedicated snows on any car with AWD or 4WD and they won't get stuck until they hang up on the undercarriage.
The main caveat I heard about air suspension, years ago, was to never leave it parked so long that the suspension might go flat. A friend had a Lincoln Town Car that his wife let sit idle for a month or so, and the result was a costly repair. They had two, as a his and hers arrangement, and the one he drove daily never gave a moment's trouble!
Great review Roman! I can't see any BMW buyer taking this offroad. At least not anywhere that would really test the articulation and approach/departure angles. This feels like a bragging-rights slap-fight between an X5 owner and a Porsche Cayenne owner.
The only thing i would really dig from that X5 is the front facing camera. Wish that was on my 4Runner Limited. Beyond that, my 4Runner could run rings around that X5 when it comes to offroading (even in Limited form).
may not be the best offroad vehicle and may not carry you over a Borneo river but I think it'll do well in Houston with the occasional street flash floods
A real test of chassis rigidity would be the tailgate. At least in my Outback, if you flex the suspension at all, it binds. You can open it, but it won't close again until you're on flat ground.
I read these comments. I think what BMW is implying is that in a pinch and if not too challenging, a BMW X5 should handle the off road ok but you will need tires to fit the conditions.
I work for Firestone and a customer came in with that tire size all i could find was a Pirelli scorpion tire bridgestone and goodyear dont even make tires in that size i checked ATD and Tirehub those tires are about $320 a tire and last about 20K miles not too good at all!!
The design brief was to be acceptable on dirt tracks but excel on roads in all conditions. So it works well in snow, rain and hail while having close to RWD car like handling in dry conditions. That's what owners want and driving up inclines is irrelevant.
Hey guys. Can you make a video about the American phenomena called "cutting people off" and why this is the biggest insult to every man? Im curious, cause it seems to be a local thing for the US only.
In America, on our roads, we like to feel free to move about. There is enough room to do so. When someone cuts you off, which is pulling in front of you in almost any situation to where you have to hit your brakes or avoid them, it's extremely frustrating. And rude.
It has nothing to do with America. But some People are entitled pricks and when two of them meet on a road bad things happen. People cut me off all the time because I drive right at the road speed limit however I keep my cool and just ignore them because if I acted in a rash manner I would endanger the lives of others on the road and mine.
@@stoff3r no. It's understandable on a busy road. It's when drivers do it for no good reason that the driver getting cut off gets angry. for example when you're on a highway in the passing Lane making a legal pass and someone from the other lane swerves and gets right in front of you for no reason.
@@rhull3939 that seems contradictory to all logic. Is that a thing? Here the car scene frown upon such shitty driving and most guys try to be better drivers than the next guy. After all, how can you complain about others if you dods the same things yourself.
You know those kinds of comments about air suspension really irritate me. Do you think it never needs maintenance or replacement? Even a car without needs shocks replacing at some point because it is normal WEAR AND TEAR. OBVIOUSLY it will cost more to replace air suspension. What do you want to pay for a ride that can be both comfortable but also sporty? So annoying. You'd swear you expect air suspension to last the life of the car.
This is a very simple off-road course 😂 I can do this course in reverse in a 7 series. Nonetheless, this is respectable off-road prowess for a road-focused SUV like this.
20 inch rims with a 45 aspect ratio on suv/sav. This is never going on a track. It should come with 18 inch rims with 55 - 65 aspect ratio. This big rim skinny tires trend needs to end for all vehicles that are not meant to go on track or drag strip.
Great car. I just bought one, and the ride is super comfy like you are flying in air. The tech in the car is great as well. Over all a very good machine. Though I don't most people will take an expansive car like this off road, it surely can do it probably not as well as as Jeep, but is still can with the help of the x drive system which is one of the best in the world at the time.
I bet if you went fast through that water the engine would hydro lock. My brother in law worked at a bmw dealer for a few years and would see several hydrolocked suvs after every rain storm. I remember one day he got 8 in the same day. Granted that's not enough data to say all bmws are terrible in the wet, but it would worry me lol.
In the opening clip with the X5 teetering where Roman is holding the back end, did anyone notice the "helpers" in the dirt? The metal grates in case the almighty X5 needed some grip? Haha. Stick to what you do well BMW. Thanks TFL!
@@fixman88 you know that crossed my mind. Who knows. Anyway thanks for clearing that up. I just cant get on board with the thought of a BMW X5 being "off-road worthy." Haha.
@@1985toyotacamry Like my Prius that is under a recall and an extended warranty for another issue right now and just had the intake manifold replaced due to a know EGR clogging issue ($1200 repair). It has a rough running engine that they cannot fix and it eats oil, another know issue with the Prius. Lastly and there is a voltage regulation issue in the front headlight wiring harness that blows out both low beams at the same time. Happened to me twice, fun. My wife's BMW is seven years old, No repairs other than routine maintenance and tires. I can't believe i bought that Toyota money pit.
It is very clear watching Roman's reviews that he has a few brands he doesn't like no matter what they do. BMW and Toyota come to mind. This was painful to watch.
