Interior

The interior of the X5 diesel is stylish; its dark walnut wood trim gave my test car a clubby feel. A panoramic moonroof comes standard, which I dig because it opens up the interior. Check it out if you haven’t already; your kids will love it, too.

The seat leather was soft and supple, and there was ample legroom in the backseat, even with two child-safety seats and an adult back there. I was comfortable sitting between the two car seats, and my husband gave it a successful whirl as well. In other words, there’s plenty of hiproom in the backseat. My daughter’s rear-facing infant-safety seat fit nicely without smooshing the front passenger up against the nonexistent glove box. My test car had two rows of seats, but the X5 diesel is available with a third row, which is a nice option if you have more than two kids or need extra room for carpooling.

There’s plenty of space in the cargo area, and it was easy to get to with the power liftgate. There’s a sleek-looking cargo-area cover to hide your latest purchases from prying eyes, as well as a hidden compartment under the cargo floor. 

My test car included plenty of other luxuries, but you’ll have to pay extra for them. The Cold Weather Package ($1,250) includes heated front and rear seats, a heated steering wheel and the fancy ski bag. The Premium Package ($3,400) includes a power liftgate — something I don’t want to live without (even though I normally do) — as well as a universal garage door opener and auto-dimming mirrors. My test car also had the Technology Package ($2,600) that includes a rearview camera, front and rear parking sensors, and a navigation system.

The fancy-schmancy ski bag held one pair of skis nicely, but two was a stretch; I won’t take off any points for that simply because I was impressed that BMW had even thought of my skis! There’s an easy-to-access pass-through in the second row that easily held my skis in the bag.

Being showered with luxurious additions can only satisfy a girl for so long. While stylish, the X5 diesel’s interior is where the hate part of my love/hate relationship began. 

The glove box needs to be easier to find, easier to open and bigger. Speaking of bigger, my bigger issue with the car was BMW’s iDrive system. The system’s sizable screen sits front and center in the dash, and you’re supposed to be able to control your audio system, navigation system and more with it. Allegedly, you can control the iDrive system by simply turning and pushing a knob that sits in between the front seats (this took me more than a few minutes to find, too). The controller knob is too far from the screen for my taste, and I had a hard time using it. It’s one user-unfriendly system. BMW has an improved, second-generation iDrive system, but it won’t be available in the X5 diesel until the 2010 model year. I’d love to test it when it hits the market, because I was sorely disappointed in the current setup.

Storage Compartments (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Fair
Cargo/Trunk Space (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Fair/Ample

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