The 2013 BMW X5 remains a top choice among luxury crossover SUVs thanks to its athletic performance and refined interior. This is one of the best-handling midsize luxury crossovers around. Whether driving on back roads or on an endless expanse of interstate, the X5 is a champ.
Picture this: You're driving on a Nevada highway. The wind is gusting, bringing with it a wall of sand that cloaks the freeway ahead and pelts the car's paint with mother nature's idea of microdermabrasion. As other cars blow about in their lanes, the 2013 BMW X5 you're driving just plows forward as if on a tranquil spring cruise. Then the freeway starts to twist and increase in elevation. Yet the X5 keeps charging on while other, less composed SUVs have to slow down.
It's in these extreme circumstances when the X5 really proves itself, demonstrating a staggering degree of stability and handling prowess for something so big and heavy. It may not be the sort of SUV that ad agencies will show fording a river or climbing a rocky mountain trail, but the X5 has a toughness and solidity all its own. At the same time, this luxury midsize crossover comes with the equipment, quality construction and high-end trappings one expects from BMW.
The xDrive35i models feature a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-6 that produces 300 horsepower and 300 pound-feet of torque. Both this engine and the 50i get an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive standard. According to BMW, it will go from zero to 60 mph in 6.4 seconds. EPA-estimated fuel economy is 16 mpg city/23 mpg highway and 19 mpg combined.
Every 2013 BMW X5 includes stability and traction control, anti lock brakes, automatic brake drying, front side airbags, side curtain airbags and adaptive brake lights. The latter flash the taillights under sudden extreme braking as a warning to trailing motorists. Also standard is the BMW Assist emergency communications system, which provides automatic crash notification, stolen vehicle recovery and on-demand roadside assistance.