• Vast dimensions mean vast interior
• Huge boot with split tailgate
• Seven-seat option available

How much space is there?

There’s no escaping just how big the X5 is. It looks it when you’re standing next to it, and it feels it when you’re perched on its luxurious leather seats. And while some might find this intimidating on small streets or in pokey car parks, the good news is this translates into generous interior space for passengers – all three rows can seat six-foot adults, though the third row is a little bit of a squeeze and probably better suited to children.

Up front, you’d do well to struggle to get comfortable, with a wide range of adjustment in the seats and the tall body offering up plenty of headroom. It’s wide too, so there’s space to stretch out in.

In the back, there’s also a lot of space, with enough room to fit three adults across the rear bench. The floor is almost flat as well, so you won’t be competing for foot space in the footwells. Taller passengers may still find their knees brushing against the seats in front if they’re set all the way back, and there isn’t quite the same sense of space as in an XC90, for example.

161

Boot space and storage

The benefits of a big car continue to show themselves at the back – the X5 offers 650 litres of boot space with the rear seats in place. Accessed via an electric tailgate that splits you have a choice of opening it fully or just the top section without the lower bit coming down. Split tailgates are handy for loading large items, and they do reduce the space needed behind the car to open the boot – but they can be difficult for shorter people, as it makes it a long reach to the very back of the boot.

Drop the rear seats – done by levers in the boot – and the total boot space expands to 1,870 litres, with the middle row of seats splitting in a 40:20:40 pattern. This means you can lower the middle seat for longer items, such as skis, while still seating two people in the rear.

There’s a useful area under the boot floor to hide away extra items, with a hydraulic strut holding it up rather than having to do it yourself. The load cover can also be stored here. Just remember that the underfloor space (and third row of seats) disappear if you pick the 45e plug-in hybrid, as its battery pack takes their place. And remember you’ll need to find space for your charging cables in the hybrid too…

161

Is it easy to park?

The X5 is surprisingly manoeuvrable in tight car parks and narrow city streets, aided by its lofty driving position and excellent forward visibility.

With standard-fit parking sensors all-round and a reversing camera, it’s easy to judge the extremities of the car, and you’ll not struggle to get it into an adequately-sized parking space. Whether you can find one big enough is another matter.

Safety

• Five-star Euro NCAP rating
• Long list of standard safety kit
• Plus more available at extra cost

The X5 received a five-star crash safety rating from Euro NCAP when it was tested back in 2019. As standard, the X5 comes with a long list of safety kit, including airbags for the front occupants, a knee airbag in the front, curtain airbags to protect the heads of those in the second row, as well as an attentiveness assistant to monitor the driver, several stability control systems and full LED lighting front and rear.

Unsurprisingly you can boost the kit count from the options list, adding various driver assistance and safety features as part of the Driving Assistant Professional pack:

• Automatic speed limit assistant
• Crossing traffic warning
• Crossroads warning with city braking function
• Lane-keeping assistant with active side collision protection
• Steering and lane control assistant
• Wrong way warning