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Car #1
Make
Model
Variant
Engine
Car #2
Make
Model
Variant
Engine

compare selected cars
2002. - 2007.
J - SUV
suv, 5 door
4 x 4
Badges
Production
Vehicle class
Body style
Wheel drive
Safety
2003. - 2007.
J - SUV
suv, 5 door
4 x 4

Marketing

Dimensons & Outlines

4754 mm
1928 mm
1726 mm
555 liters
1570 liters
100 liters
Length
Width
Height
Boot (min)
Boot (max)
Fuel tank
4667 mm
1872 mm
1715 mm
465 liters
1550 liters
93 liters
2002 Volkswagen Touareg
2003 BMW X5

Engine

Volkswagen
3.2 VR6
Petrol
6 - V config, 4 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
3189 cc
220 hp
305 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Petrol
6 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
2979 cc
231 hp
300 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

manual gearbox - 6 gears
2164 kg
9.9 s
201 km/h
18.6 l/100km
10.6 l/100km
13.5 l/100km
324 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
manual gearbox - 6 gears
1970 kg
8.3 s
210 km/h
17.8 l/100km
9.7 l/100km
12.7 l/100km
307 g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

automatic - 6 gears
2164 kg
9.9 s
197 km/h
19.1 l/100km
10.8 l/100km
13.8 l/100km
331 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
automatic - 5 gears
1995 kg
8.8 s
210 km/h
18.1 l/100km
9.9 l/100km
12.9 l/100km
312 g/km

Expenses

4100 EUR
Price from
5300 EUR

Virtual Adviser's™ opinion

Overview

Well, these are two pretty similar cars we have here! It's only details that could potentially make the difference. Considering they both belong to the suv segment and utilize the same 5-door suv body style and the 4 x 4 wheel drive system, it all comes up to the specific petrol engine choice they offer. The first one has a Volkswagen-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 6-cylinder, 24-valves 220hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 6-cylinder, 24-valves 231hp engine designed by BMW.

Safety

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. Both vehicles belong to the suv segment, which is generally a very good thing safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. Furthermore, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, Touareg offers a considerable difference of 10% more metal.

Reliability

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that Volkswagen does have a slight advantage, at least on all of the models level. These are the results of an independent reasearch, while our visitors describe reliability of Volkswagen, as well as BMW, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. Independent research findings rank Touareg as average reliability-wise, and X5 is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as Touareg rank it on average as 3.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 5.0 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

BMW is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 1.6 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 210 kilometers per hour, 9km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be BMW X5, averaging around 12.7 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (22 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 6% difference compared to Touareg.


Verdict

BMW appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Touareg offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. From there things take a different direction, with BMW being considerably quicker, thus putting more smile on driver's face. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but BMW. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. I suggest you spend two more minutes in order to find out which car, based on your needs and budget, would be picked by the virtual adviser, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.

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