BMW X5 G05 Diesel xDrive30d xLine (2018-2026)

Really nice car, but could be so much better – First time owner of a BMW X5 xDrive30d G05 and I must say that overall I am happy that I made the decision but was rather surprised, if not disappointed, about some key features that are missing and appear to be completely over looked. My previous vehicle was a Hyundai Tuscon Highlander, and while the BMW iDrive system appears to be complex and… Read more

very customisable, the Tuscon was hands-down more customisable in terms of settings for key functions.

Pros - Comfort, handling and super low road noise - Steering assistance is a delight to use and works very well - Reverse and parallel parking assistant works perfectly - Trim, upholstery and build quality is well executed - Powerful but quiet engine - Drive Recorder works well - Very fuel efficient for such a large car

Cons - Complete lack of fixed Safety Camera warnings for Australia. (Note - BMW have launched a Safety Camera app for the US market but there is no sign of timing of release for the Australian market.) - Wireless charging pad is really sensitive with my Samsung S10 and I find I have to resort to USB cable to get a reliable charge. - Lack of customisation of key safety features. For example Blind Spot Detection - only provides haptic feedback through the steering wheel and sometimes it is very difficult to sense. There is no adjustment for the haptic feedback intensity or to add an acoustic warning. - There is no Australian content in the News app. Seems almost exclusively Asian news. - Keep getting a notification to complete a Remote Software Update from time to time but when I manually check from the car there is no update found. - BMW dropped the 20GB Music storage which used to be a standard option. Now you need to purchase your own USB stick and take up an available USB slot to play recorded music. - Touch pad entry using your left hand is almost useless (unless you are a left-hander!) - Panorama Sun Roof can't be controlled from the in-car Voice commands.

Overall The lack of Safety Camera alerts was a significant step backwards in a top end car and I really miss this feature. Korean and Japanese competitors have had this in their vehicles for several years already. Really very surprised that BMW can't get their act together to provide the same system. In fact, Here Maps provides the underlying technology and data to the Korean and Japanese competitors and is actually owned by a conglomerate of European automobile manufactures which includes BMW. The iDrive system looks as if it is very advanced and can customise settings to the finest points. In reality, it looks more complicated to use than you actually get the benefit and when you get really into the depths, there is very little that you can customise or want to use. The basics are there, but certain features like the Blind Spot Detection that I indicated to above can't be tweaked at all.

Hopefully future software updates will address some of these concerns and I can come back and update the rating.