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2003 BMW X5 Luxury Sport Utility Vehicle, SUV

The X5 is what happens when BMW's performance-oriented designers direct their attention to a sport-utility wagon. It looks remarkably like one of BMW's big sports sedans, only jacked in height and with the backpack of a wagon's cargo compartment. An engine fits in front of the four-door cabin that holds two rows of seats for five and the cargo bay accessed through a clever clamshell tailgate. What makes BMW's SUV different from the lot concerns its unitized structure and the application of performance-oriented mechanical paraphernalia. A computerized electronic controller distributes power to all wheels through a planetary center differential. Slippage of a wheel can prompt the smart system to redirect torque to whichever set of wheels can maintain forward momentum. X5 divides into three different models based on powertrain. The X5 4.4i stocks a 4.4-liter V8, delivering 290 hp through a five-speed automatic tied to BMW's Steptronic shift controller. A 3.0-liter in-line-six rated at 225 hp goes into X5 3.0i with Steptronic automatic or five-speed ZF Type C manual. The power wagon is the X5 4.6is rigged with a 4.6-liter high-performance V8 spiked to 340 hp. New equipment comes with editions of 2003, such as a Brake Force Display in the instrument panel, rear-seat HPS air bags and the optional navigation system upgraded with DVD database. In addition, an available sport package includes adjustable ride height controls and V-rated tires. New Dakota leather covers seats in X5 3.0i and X5 4.4i.