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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 / Audi
4.2 5V
Petrol
8 - V config, 5 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
4172 cc
310 hp
410 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Petrol
8 - V config, 4 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
4398 cc
320 hp
440 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

automatic - 6 gears
2217 kg
8.1 s
218 km/h
20.3 l/100km
11.1 l/100km
14.5 l/100km
348 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
automatic - 6 gears
2095 kg
7.0 s
210 km/h
18.2 l/100km
10.2 l/100km
13.1 l/100km
317 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 8-cylinder, 40-valves 310hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 8-cylinder, 32-valves 320hp engine designed by BMW.

Safety

A starting point here would be to take a look at the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests which were performed on both of the cars, with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. 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 marginal difference of 6% more metal.

Reliability

I don't like generalizing things when it comes to reliability, although it does seem that Volkswagen does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Volkswagen, as well as BMW, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. The same official information place 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 5.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 3.0 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

BMW is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 1.1 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 210 kilometers per hour, 8km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be BMW X5, averaging around 13.1 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (22 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 11% difference compared to Touareg.


Verdict

Volkswagen 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 slightly better overall protection and takes the lead. 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! It's not difficult to say then that if I'd need to make a choice, it would definitely be the BMW. Anyway, that's the most objective conclusion I could've came up with and it's based solely on the information found on this website. Aspects such as design, practicality, brand value and driving experience are there for you to measure them out. Also, you could use the oportunity to find out which car, everything taken into account, would be the perfect choice for you in the eyes of the virtual adviser, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.

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