[blw]

I'm not sure those who are panning it have driven an X5. It certainly does fit a certain class of user. Where I live, 4wd is not optional. If you don't have it, you don't get out - I've already tried that experiment.

The X5 is definitely not the ultimate off-road vehicle, but my "road" sometimes looks like "off-road" - one of those times being right now, with 12" of snow in some places, big hills, muddy rutted spots, and "passing" zones that are clearly not part of the "pavement."

I happen to be a pretty loyal BMW owner - so when I needed 4wd, I looked first at BMW. There are two options, the 325ix and the x5. I drove them both, and I liked them both - I prefer the 325ix, but the x5 is a far bigger animal with much better ability to "pass" on my roads. (My daily driver is a 3-series convertible, weather permitting/encouraging.)

Then I drove a Range Rover, a Land Rover (Discovery), a Bronco and an Escape. The X5 is a car, the others are really trucks. And of course, it's not just a car, it's a BMW car. The X5 isn't equivalent to an M3, but it just kills the others as far as responsiveness, smoothness on the road, quietness, etc. It's not close. The RR and LR are both more capable of offroad excursions, but I'm not pioneering here, I'm getting home on bad roads half of the year.

No, most of these aren't in the same price category, but most of those that ARE share the same characteristrics, and I'd rather drive a BMW than a Mercedes, Lexus or whatever.

If I still lived in suburban San Francisco/San Jose, I would have never even thought to try an X5. My 740i was plenty of space, and "off road" meant driving on the shoulder. If I needed more hauling space, I'd have gone for a wagon, perhaps a 525iT. But here, the X5 makes perfect sense, and so far it's been a good fit.