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BMW Raises Electric iX5 Range Estimate to 450 Miles Ahead of Launch
BMW now expects the iX5 60 xDrive to deliver up to 450 miles of EPA range, 15 miles more than its earlier estimate, as the automaker prepares to begin deliveries in the first quarter of next year.
BMW has raised its range estimate for the upcoming electric X5, telling reporters that the iX5 60 xDrive should deliver up to 450 miles on the EPA cycle. The revised figure adds 15 miles to the preliminary estimate BMW offered when it first discussed the vehicle, and it would place the electric SUV among the longest-range models on the U.S. market.
Company representatives shared the updated number during the launch of the fifth-generation X5 in California. John Kelly, BMW’s product manager for luxury vehicles, said the electric SUV is now expected to travel a bit farther than originally projected. The official EPA rating is still pending and is expected in the coming weeks, leaving open the question of whether the production model will match the target.
The estimate rests on a battery pack larger than anything BMW has previously put into a production vehicle. The iX5 60 xDrive carries a 144-kWh pack built with Gen6 technology and cylindrical cells. BMW says those cells offer 20 percent higher energy density than prismatic cells, a difference that helps turn the combustion-free X5 into a long-distance cruiser despite its size and weight.
Getting more than 400 miles from a large, heavy luxury SUV is a significant engineering achievement, and BMW had already set a high bar with its initial 435-mile estimate. The company’s decision to revise that figure upward suggests the early projection may have been conservative.
Evidence for that view came earlier this week, when an iX5 covered 500 miles on a single charge during a real-world drive from San Francisco to Newport Beach in Southern California. At the end of the trip, the vehicle still had enough energy for roughly another 50 miles, implying a theoretical total range of about 550 miles. The SUV weighs more than 6,200 pounds.
That test came with caveats. Average speed, route conditions and the degree of efficiency-focused driving are not known, so replicating the result in everyday use is unlikely. Even so, the run offers a demonstration of what the platform can do and may ease range anxiety for buyers considering a large electric SUV.
BMW dealers will not have the iX5 until the first quarter of next year. Pricing starts at $81,250, including destination and handling fees but before options. The G65-generation X5 comes exclusively with five seats, so buyers who need a third row will have to look elsewhere.
The company’s electric SUV lineup is shifting at the same time. A second-generation X7 debuting in 2027 is widely expected to spawn an electric iX7, and BMW is considering an even larger SUV for North America that could be called the X9. It is too early to know whether that project will be approved, or whether an electric version would follow.
Between the iX5 and the expected iX7, BMW sees no reason to keep the iX in the United States. The company has already ended allocations for that model, though it will remain available in other markets until around mid-2028.
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