What's the real world gas mileage on X5 35i and 50i?

[admranger]

The lease on my 40e is up in July. I've relocated to the land of cheap gas ($2.03 for premium at Costco yesterday). I need a commuter vehicle that will see between 15k-20k miles per year.

I drove a nicely loaded X5 35i Monday and was somewhat underwhelmed by the acceleration of the 35i. That got me thinking of getting a 50i instead since gas is nearly free here...

I'm looking for a fully loaded X5 w/comfort seats (I'm old), DA Plus, etc. CWP a plus, but only heated seats mandatory (though the heated steering wheel would be nice).

So as far as mileage is concerned, I commute about 12 miles per day except Mondays and Fridays where I drive 180 miles one way (and 6 miles on the other end of the commute) as I have two residences I go between.

I've tried other vehicles including the new Caddy XT5, Lincoln Nautilus, GMC Acadia, etc. I live in Carlsbad, NM during the week so no BMW dealership -- just a billion oil fracking trucks -- thought I'd look at American iron. They were all nice, but too much $ to buy new given how hard I'm going to be treating the vehicle. Plus, there's something to be said for familiarity and I haven't had anything but a BMW in the garage since 1994!

[Maverik259]

I get about 18mpg driving 12 miles to work every day. Most of its hwy per distance but it's more like 70% hwy and 30% street per time.

On long hwy halls at about 75-80 mph from va beach to DC I get about 20-21 mpg

50i with chip

[DuSh]

I have worst case scenario of driving a tuned 50i in abusive style for very short distances under 1 mile, idling often and I'm tuned. Still get 14mpg on 91 octane.
In your case 50i might get up to 18-20mpg average if you are going to drive it like a normal person and not like a maniac I am.
50i even stock is about 4.3sec 0-60 which is still faster than a comparable 2018 Tesla Model X 100D. Both in 0-60 and 1/4 mile faster - to put it into perspective. Basically very few SUV are faster than 50i (X5M, Cayenne Turbo/S, Tesla Model X P90/100D, Urus). None of those listed ones is comparable in price with 50i

[Mbunje]

2014 50i Msport with Bridgestone tires. I am averaging 15 with little highway and a heavy right foot. If I were commuting I think a 35i with MPPK (chip) would be a better option

[alphaod]

Heavy footwork, I'm doing 14 mpg; regular footwork with traffic maybe 16 mpg on average. Road trips I can do 20-24 mpg with good driving habits.

[BimmerTy]

I do a similar 12 mile commute M-F (10 miles highway, 2 miles city) and drive down to the beach house at least once to twice a month (120 miles). Averaging 15-16 with a heavy foot for the commute and up around 20-22 for all highway driving running 93 octane currently $2.19 at Costco. 2015 50i with 21x11.5 rear wheels. You will not regret the power of a 50i.

[burnurass]

Have the 50i. Right now averaging 16.5-17.0 mpg with a 50/50 mix. On highway hauls it can do 20 easily.

[Maverik259]

If initial oomph and mpg is what you're after then get a 35d. Diesel with a tune would be great for a daily.

[M302_imola]

35i x-drive. I average 21-22 mpg but I use eco mode most of the time and do 60% interstate driving. That being said, I'm extremely impressed with the mpg given the hp and size of this SUV.

[kanvas]

50i doing 16 mpg.

[Guntherpdx]

11.6 mpg in city, highway is about 20mpg. I still can't figure out why it's so bad, I use eco pro nearly all the time. I even changed out the 469m wheels for a 19" wheel thinking it might help. My X6M was around 10.8 and at least I had fun with it.

If I could to it all over I would have bought the 50i and taken the gas mileage hit. However at this point I will just wait until I can afford the X5M

[Road Carnage]

I average in the mid 17’s with my 2015 50i. I’m roughly 60/40 back roads/highway on 93 octane.

[admranger]

Originally Posted by Maverik259

If initial oomph and mpg is what you're after then get a 35d. Diesel with a tune would be great for a daily.

Diesel makes no sense as it's ~$0.60/gallon more around here.

The worry is crossing the roads with all the traffic and oil field trucks roaring on them. I need to get up and go. Surprisingly, the 40e moves right along from the start. That electric motor provides the torque needed to get going where I was waiting for the 3.5 to spool up for me.

Thanks for all the responses to the thread! I appreciate it.

[Maverik259]

Originally Posted by admranger

Diesel makes no sense as it's ~$0.60/gallon more around here.

The worry is crossing the roads with all the traffic and oil field trucks roaring on them. I need to get up and go. Surprisingly, the 40e moves right along from the start. That electric motor provides the torque needed to get going where I was waiting for the 3.5 to spool up for me.

Thanks for all the responses to the thread! I appreciate it.

Ya but you get more than 30% further in range with a diesel compared to a 50i which actually does justify the cost difference. You're talking 450-600 miles per tank vice 3-400. This is all based in your $2 per gallon for premium you quote (which won't last btw) and $2.60 for diesel. Plus diesel is much more stable in pricing than premium in my experience.

[F15 X5 Silversurfer]

You guys across the pond don't realise how lucky you are!!
Here in the UK prices are currently around diesel £1.30 Ltr / petrol/gas £1.20 Ltr, with a UK Gallon being 5 Ltrs. About 75% of that price is various taxes !!!
You can now see why diesel is so popular, especially when you consider the MPG we get, although modern petrol engines are closing the gap.
My 2016 F25 X5 3.0D M Sport is averaging 31-33mpg for local driving and on a longer journey will reach 35/36 mpg. However the instant torque for overtaking, very necessary on UK roads, is awesome moreso if you use Sport mode, although comfort is more than adequate most of the time.

[Mr.47]

Originally Posted by admranger

Diesel makes no sense as it's ~$0.60/gallon more around here.

The worry is crossing the roads with all the traffic and oil field trucks roaring on them. I need to get up and go. Surprisingly, the 40e moves right along from the start. That electric motor provides the torque needed to get going where I was waiting for the 3.5 to spool up for me.

Thanks for all the responses to the thread! I appreciate it.

Diesel wipes the 40e in performance and efficiency. Solid 27 mpg average, 575-600 miles per tank normal driving with occasional hard acceleration. On my last road trip 32 mpg 720 miles per tank. And that low end diesel torque is plentiful to get it self outta sticky situation, and they don’t depreciated as fast as the rest of the line up (excluding x5m). The diesel offers the best of both worlds efficiency and performance.

[DBV1]

Where I live, diesel is usually the same or cheaper than the premium fuel that is used in the gas engine.

The last 3 years, except for last quarter, diesel has been cheaper than premium and sometimes the same as regular gas, making it the ideal long range SUV by far.

Originally Posted by admranger

Diesel makes no sense as it's ~$0.60/gallon more around here.

The worry is crossing the roads with all the traffic and oil field trucks roaring on them. I need to get up and go. Surprisingly, the 40e moves right along from the start. That electric motor provides the torque needed to get going where I was waiting for the 3.5 to spool up for me.

Thanks for all the responses to the thread! I appreciate it.

[admranger]

Originally Posted by DBV1

Where I live, diesel is usually the same or cheaper than the premium fuel that is used in the gas engine.

The last 3 years, except for last quarter, diesel has been cheaper than premium and sometimes the same as regular gas, making it the ideal long range SUV by far.

No doubt if diesel were the same or lower than premium I'd jump on it.

[geedup35]

50i - heavy foot, mostly local driving within 10 miles. 60/40 split with city driving the majority of the time. Also, mostly drive in Sport/Sport +

11.5-12 mpg.

[DBV1]

Diesel has really dropped by us in the last week. I paid $2.12 a gallon yesterday.

Originally Posted by admranger

No doubt if diesel were the same or lower than premium I'd jump on it.

[Gilly1964]

Ouch. We pay about £7.50 a gallon

[Deubert85]

Been experimenting with trying to stay in eco mode and get that mpg up as high as I can with my 50i. Highway 60% city 40%. My last run was 21.5 mpg on the tank.