Munich, Germany - After nearly two years of hype and rumours, and not one but two 'near-production' concepts, BMW has confirmed its first production plug-in hybrid that is not an i car - because it's an X car.
Badged as the X5 xDrive 40e, it combines a two-litre TwinPower turbopetrol four delivering 180kW and 350Nm with a synchronous electric motor that brings 83kW and 250Nm to the party, for a total of 230kW and 450Nm.
That gets laid down through an eight-speed Steptronic transmission and permanent all wheel-drive, taking the 40e from 0-100km/h in 6.8 seconds and on to an electronically governed 210km/h - all at a combined-cycle cost of 3.4 litres per 100km and 15.4kWh over the same distance.
It's also able to run up to 31km as a pure electric, given a full charge in its 9kWh lithium-ion battery pack to start with, albeit limited to 120km/h flat out. The battery pack also supplies power to the car's 12V electrical system via a step-down transformer, and can be recharged from any domestic 220V socket, a BMW Wallbox or a public charging station.
To save space the battery pack is housed under the luggage compartment floor, which will still swallow 500 litres of retail therapy, or 1720 litres with the 40:20:40 split rear seat-back folded.
INTELLIGENT ENERGY MANAGEMENT
Power usage is managed via the eDrive button on the centre console. In the default Auto setting, it uses the electric motor to boost the combustion engine's power for maximum effect whenever the driver floors the loud pedal, while the Max setting engages pure electric drive - all 31km and 120km/h of it, as we said.
The Save setting loads the battery to full charge using 'free' energy from braking and downhill runs and keeps it that way so that the full pure-electric range is available when you need it.
The adaptive suspension comfort package with rear air suspension and dynamic damper control is standard issue; chassis set-up is controlled by a separate switch, tuneable to Comfort, Sport and Eco Pro settings - independently of drive mode setting.
All the gizmotronics available for the conventional X5 are also offered on the hybrid, as well as an extra feature, only for the 40e - an intelligent energy management function, that's used in conjunction with the standard-issue Professional satnav to analyse both the route profile and the traffic conditions in real time and manage the battery levels so that there's always enough pure-electric range for the urban sections of your route.
A hybrid-specific version of the BMW Remote app makes it possible to check the battery pack's state of charge, find public charging stations or call up efficiency evaluations on your smartphone, as well as activating the heating and/or cooling systems before you even get to the car.
The X5 xDrive 40e is already in production in the BMW plant at Spartanburg, South Carolina, on the same production line as the ‘conventional’ X5. BMW SA has yet to confirm whether or when it will be released in South Africa; as soon as we know, so will you.