BMW X5

The verdict: With its highly intoxicating twin-turbocharged V-8, the 2024 BMW X5 M60i blurs the line between simply being an X5 with an uplevel engine and a full-blown performance SUV.

Versus the competition: The X5 M60i knows nothing of subtlety, with a racy V-8 engine, dance club interior lighting and angular styling.

The 2024 BMW X5 five-seat luxury SUV features an updated interior with new displays and control technology, plus a more chiseled exterior and new 48-volt mild-hybrid powertrains across the lineup. If you think that hybrid technology has cost the V-8-powered X5 some of its edge, you’re wrong: In the 2024 X5 M60i, the rip-roaring V-8 makes 523 horsepower.

Related: New Hybrid Powertrains for Refreshed 2024 BMW X5, X6 Lineup

The X5 is also available in six-cylinder 40i and plug-in hybrid 50e configurations, as well as a line-topping 617-hp X5 M. For this review, I drove an X5 M60i that, including options, cost around $100,000. I used the X5 for my everyday routine, both carrying around my family of four and enjoying open-road romps sans family; we also performed Cars.com’s standardized cargo and child-safety seat testing.

M60i V-8 Goodness

What stood out most was just how entertaining it was to hit the long pedal on the right. The M60i’s V-8 is powerful, but it’s also engaging and responsive in a way you wouldn’t expect from a mid-range performance car (the X5 M is the top version in the lineup). That said, a couple of years ago, the M60i could have been the M version: It uses a new engine, dubbed S68, versus the outgoing N63 V-8, and that “S” denotes it comes from the M division.

The 2024 M60i’s natural exhaust sounds are more exotic and less muscular than the old engine’s, which I prefer. It sounds like the spent gases should be coming from something much lower and sleeker, with fewer doors. The engine is snappy and powerful, and it doesn’t feel like there are any shortcomings — except possibly fuel economy, but that comes with the territory when you have over 500 hp in something that weighs 5,355 pounds. What seals the deal on this BMW’s performance is that the eight-speed automatic transmission is in harmony with the engine, and in sport driving modes, the transmission winds out gears like I would if I were driving a manual; it never upshifts beyond where the engine makes its gusto.

The M60i is rated at the same maximum 523 hp as the outgoing M50i, which lacked hybrid assist. The peak specs don’t show it, but the new mild-hybrid system exerts up to 147 pounds-feet of torque and 12 hp in certain driving conditions. The mild-hybrid system is composed of a 48-volt battery stored under the hood and an electric motor integrated into the eight-speed automatic transmission. This isn’t a system that lets you drive on electric power alone; rather, it gives the car a boost of electrons to smooth out the driving experience and boost fuel economy — but only slightly. Versus the 2023 M50i, it gains just 1 mpg in its EPA city rating and 1 mpg in its combined rating, to 19 mpg combined.

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The 2024 X5 M60i’s 0-60 mph time isn’t any quicker, however; at 4.2 seconds, it’s actually a touch slower than the outgoing M50i’s time of 4.1 seconds, according to BMW. Will you feel that difference? Not likely, but the addition of the hybrid system seems like a lot of work, and cost, for minimal fuel savings and a slower 0-60 mph time.

Surprisingly, ride quality even with 22-inch wheels and standard adaptive suspension (not the optional air suspension) is superb. Our test car was fitted with winter tires, and while you can hear impacts, you can’t feel them — which is impressive considering 22-inch wheels and tires often lead to harsh impacts and ride quality. Other than the faint slap of tires on the road, the cabin resists letting in wind and road noise.

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New Controls

The X5’s 14.9-inch horizontally oriented touchscreen houses digital controls for the climate and audio systems; no physical buttons remain, though voice commands do. There’s thankfully still a volume knob, but the lack of physical buttons is a twofold annoyance: It’s harder to hit the right spot on a touchscreen than a button, and many climate settings — like heated seats, the heated armrest, recirculate and zone sync — are buried multiple menus deep. The screen itself is gigantic and high-resolution, though, which makes it well suited for Apple CarPlay. I also enjoyed the digital instrument panel; even though it contains a lot of information, it’s displayed in a way that’s very easy to read and understand.

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Interior Size and Quality

The main sticking point with the X5’s size is its backseat. According to the specs, it isn’t much larger than the BMW X3’s, and carting around my two kids under 6 years old in their car seats wasn’t easy. The rear doors don’t open very wide, which not only made it difficult to get the car seats in and out, but it was harder to help the kids get in and out, too. These points took the X5 down a grade in our Car Seat Check.

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The X5’s cargo area is easy to use because it’s a nice rectangular shape with minimal intrusions, but its 19.3 cubic feet of Cars.com-measured space is on the smaller end in our testing of mid-size two-row SUVs. The Genesis GV80, for one, has 23.5 cubic feet of space; the X5 is more in line with the Jeep Grand Cherokee and all-electric BMW iX, which both have 20.3 cubic feet of cargo space in our testing. The X5 isn’t the biggest SUV in BMW’s lineup anymore, either, so if you need more cargo space or a third row, check out the X7. The X5 has kept its split tailgate/liftgate design instead of switching to the more common single liftgate design. There may be some uses where this is preferred, like sitting on the folded tailgate to watch a kids’ soccer game, but in most cases, I’d prefer not having to lean over the tailgate to retrieve items from the cargo area.

Higher points of the X5’s interior include its materials quality, fit and finish, and colorful ambient lighting, which certainly puts on a show at night (even if the latter was a bit too much for me; I found it so overpowering I turned it off). The carbon fiber looks real, and I didn’t question the M60’s $100,000-or-so (including destination) price tag given the opulence delivered inside.

More From Cars.com:

• 2024 BMW X5 Plug-In Hybrid EV Range: How Far Can It Go on Electricity Alone?
• How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2024 BMW X5?
• 2024 BMW 5 Series Nabs Top Safety Pick+, X5 Misses the Mark
• 2024 BMW X5, X6 M Competitions: Hybrid V-8 Promises Efficiency Boost
• Which SUVs Can Tow at Least 5,000 Pounds?

The $100,000 Question: Is It Worth It?

I didn’t flinch at the $100,000 as-tested price tag of the X5 M60i given its potent, refined powertrain and interior quality; leases in the Chicago area are going for $1,259 per month for 36 months to qualified buyers with a $6,325 down payment at this time of writing. The 2024 M60i’s headlights also perform better in Insurance Institute for Highway Safety testing than the ones in lesser trims. The 2024 X5’s standard headlights earned a marginal performance rating (on a scale of good, acceptable, marginal or poor), which keeps the SUV from being named an IIHS Top Safety Pick — something that’s been rectified for the 2025 model year.

Speaking of $100,000 performance SUVs, shortly after driving the X5 M60i, I drove an updated 2024 Porsche Cayenne S, which was astonishingly different from the BMW. While the Porsche is no lightweight in terms of curb weight, it was lighter on its feet and felt more coupelike in its cockpit. It’s more well rounded overall than the BMW’s brutish acceleration and dominant presence. As equipped, however, the Porsche I drove was $20,000 more than the BMW, which swings the needle back to the BMW for me.

There’s still another rung on the X5 ladder above the M60i: the $123,295 X5 M Competition. The X5 M60i, though, makes a compelling case for drivers looking for more-affordable V-8 performance, of which it offers plenty.

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