- The brand new BMW X5 doesn’t have a split-folding tailgate
- BMW claims it was as a result of buyer suggestions
- BMW says the brand new tailgate is wider and simpler to load objects into
This week, BMW revealed the fifth-generation X5. Whereas the large headlines surrounded its 5 totally different international powertrains, the information was principally overshadowed by one thing extra essential: the shortage of a split-folding tailgate.
The break up tailgate has been a staple of the X5 since its launch again in 1999. Whereas different SUVs just like the Toyota Land Cruiser axed the choice years in the past, the X5 remained one of many final true holdouts. Till now.
Attending the X5’s launch occasion in Spartanburg, South Carolina, I requested BMW why they got here to the choice to kill the break up tailgate. The Director of Luxurious Class Automobiles for BMW Alpina and Rolls-Royce, Philip Koehn, instructed me:
‘Any common individual with common arm size is definitely struggling. When you’re completely trustworthy, the break up tailgate is in itself a cool factor with the low-end opening, and a normal-sized individual will actually battle to load, or much more importantly, unload the boot.’
Picture by: BMW
Regardless of citing buyer suggestions, Koehn supplied no exhausting knowledge or percentages of shoppers who had this challenge. And social media suggestions appears to contradict these claims, with present and former homeowners saying the function is one among their favourite points of the automobile.
Koehn additionally cited the need to create a sleeker rear hatch as another excuse why the X5 loses its tailgate, saying the next:
‘The opposite bit is that the brand new X5 has a bit quicker roofline, therefore the highest finish of the tailgate has come down a bit, and subsequently the general top of the tailgate really has been decreased, however by opposite, we have opened, we have elevated the width of the aperture.’
The 2027 BMW X5 is slated to hit sellers in late 2026, with gasoline, plug-in hybrid, and electrical powertrain choices. One factor it will not have? A break up tailgate.
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Supply: BMW
Motor1’s Take: We do not solely consider BMW axing the split-tailgate was as a result of buyer suggestions. We consider it could have one thing extra to do with cost-cutting measures, or a want to create a sleeker roofline for improved vary on the electrical iX5 fashions. Nonetheless, we’re unhappy it is gone, and that there’s one much less SUV on the market with the proper rear tailgate setup.
