Next-generation BMW X5: BMW iX5 60 xDrive tipped for 147.8 kWh battery

The next-generation BMW X5 is expected to gain a fully electric version - the lead image is purely illustrative - and the first (unofficial) technical details are already circulating.

According to Auto Motor und Sport, which says it accessed documents published on the website of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the future BMW iX5 60 xDrive should use a battery with 147.8 kWh of gross capacity.

That figure is unusual even among large electric SUVs. After allowing for the typical safety buffer, the usable capacity would likely sit close to 142 kWh.

Battery pack layout, cells and voltage

The same source claims this very large pack will be made up of 960 cylindrical cells and operate at roughly 704 V. In practical terms, that points to an electrical system close to an 800 V architecture - an approach that should enable very high charging power, in the same way as the new BMW iX3, which is quoted with charging rates of up to 400 kW.

If confirmed, it would be the biggest battery ever fitted to a production electric BMW. Even against its rivals, it would be the largest battery in the class. To put it into context, the publication also pulled together several models currently on sale in Portugal and across Europe for comparison.

More technical details

Range figures are not yet known. Auto Motor und Sport notes, however, that a battery of this size could allow the iX5 to reach very high numbers, even when accounting for the extra weight and larger dimensions compared with the iX3.

The new iX3 50 xDrive is advertised at around 800 km of range, so the iX5 could end up close to that figure or, in theory, go further.

Another point matters here: the iX5 is expected to remain based on the CLAR platform - the same flexible underpinning that supports Diesel, petrol and plug-in hybrid versions of the X5. In other words, BMW would be bringing next-generation technology, including a cell-to-pack battery, to a platform that was not originally designed solely for electric vehicles.

BMW iX5 60 xDrive motors and output

There are also figures for the drivetrain. The BMW iX5 60 xDrive is said to use two electric motors: one on the front axle producing 184 kW (250 cv) and another on the rear axle delivering 240 kW (326 cv). Combined output would be 424 kW - the equivalent of around 577 cv - with more than 800 Nm of torque.

The document in question is a technical sheet used during the United States type-approval process with the EPA and the CARB. Several models are listed in it, but the BMW iX5 60 xDrive stands out specifically because of the battery size.

Even so, these details should be treated with caution. The same document also contains less plausible information about some combustion-engined models, particularly around engine architecture and displacement. So, until BMW confirms anything officially, these figures should be viewed carefully.