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MERAN, Italy – You can make a case for putting BMW AG’s powerful and efficient 3.0L turbodiesel in just about anything on wheels, but nowhere does it make more sense than in the BMW X5 xDrive cross/utility vehicle.
Sharpening your pencil and trying to use fuel-cost savings alone to justify the $4,000 premium for the $52,025 diesel version of the X5 xDrive 35d vs. the $47,925 I-6 gasoline-powered xDrive 30i is not a compelling case to penny pinchers. At least not when diesel still costs more than even the premium gasoline BMWs require.
A $1,550 income-tax credit sweetens the deal. But when you are spending $50,000 on a luxury CUV, pinching pennies is not likely your top concern. Value, performance and being greener than the neighbors are more plausible priorities, and here the diesel shines with 25% better fuel efficiency and a whopping 425 lb.-ft (576 Nm) of torque at 1,750 rpm.
Whether navigating winding mountain roads, barreling down the expressway at high speeds or simply chugging around town, the diesel option stands out as the most rational choice when the alternatives are an overmatched I-6 gasoline engine or a potent-but-thirsty 4.8L V-8.
Final fuel-economy ratings from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are not expected to be released until after the xDrive 35d debuts in production trim at the Los Angeles auto show, this week, but city/highway estimates are 19/26 mpg (12.4-9.1 L/100 km). Compared with the similar engines, that is excellent efficiency.
