BMW X5: Top Safety Wins 5-Star Award.

The BMW X5 has reached for the stars - and has won them all: In the
current Euro NCAP crash test, BMW's Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV)
scoring a total of 33 points easily reached the number of points
required for the five-star award, thereby again proving its outstanding
safety standard. At the same time, the X5 is the first ever so-called
"large off-roader" to win five stars in the Euro NCAP. This
success underlines the fact that aesthetic design, dynamism and safety -
the typical characteristics of all BMW automobiles - also distinguish
the X5 unconfined. Thus, the attractive design of the X5 sports
activity vehicle combines the sporty-comfortable characteristics of
BMW's saloons with the wide-ranging cross-country capabilities of an
off-roader. Likewise, it represents the marque as a shining example in
terms of safety. With independent wheel suspension and stability
management system DSC, its suspension sets the active safety benchmark
in this class of vehicle. The five stars the vehicle has now won in the
Euro NCAP crash test testify to the high standard of passive safety,
which the X5 has already demonstrated in previous crash tests. Thus, as
early as in 2000, in the test conducted by the US Insurance Institute
for Highway Safety (IIHS), it scored the best result ever achieved by
any vehicle up until that time. Euro NCAP - the acid test for
automobiles The acronym NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme) stands for
the toughest of crash tests an automobile can be subjected to. The Euro
NCAP test, which is recognized and continually tightened by European
governments, consumer protection organizations and automobile clubs,
has meanwhile become an established criterion for crash tests in
Europe. Similar NCAP test procedures are applied in Japan and the
United States. The Euro NCAP test consists of three single tests:
frontal, side and pole crash. In the frontal crash test, the BMW X5
scored 13 out of 16 points, while it won all of the 18 possible points
in the jointly rated side and pole crash tests. The Euro NCAP
consortium thus attest to the very low injury risk of the X5 for all
occupants and in all crash scenarios tested. The Euro NCAP frontal
crash test is considered to be one of the most difficult of all crash
test set-ups: In this so-called offset crash, the vehicle travelling at
a speed of 64.5 kph impacts a deformable obstacle with only 40 percent
of its frontal width. Although the collision forces thus act on only
part of the car's front end, they must be distributed over the full
width of the vehicle in as controlled a manner as possible. In the case
of the BMW X5, several force introduction points receive the
longitudinal forces and direct them to the underbody, the side members,
the side frame and transmission tunnel. Optimum protection in side and
pole crash scenarios In the side crash test, a deformable barrier hits
the stationary vehicle at 50 kph. In this test, the X5 scored the
maximum possible number of points. In the additional pole crash test,
the vehicle hits a vertical steel pole of 25 cm diameter at 29 kph at
the level of the head centre of gravity of an adult. For the X5, the
HIC value (Head Injury Criterion) for the head proved uncritical so
that the crash experts again awarded the maximum score for this test.
Unitized body instead of frame construction That the BMW X5 affords such
exemplary protection to its occupants in the event of a crash is
something not taken for granted in the segment of large off-roaders.
Sports utility vehicles (SUV) which are rather designed for rugged
off-road driving, with their conventional frame construction make the
energy absorption process more difficult in a collision. By contrast,
BMW's Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) dispenses with a frame
construction. Instead, the X5 is based on the lightweight unitized body
which has become normal practice for passenger cars and is thus able to
absorb considerably more crash energy than a vehicle with frame
construction. Thus, the loads acting on the occupants are reduced even
before the restraint systems, like safety belts and airbags, are
activated. Active and passive safety at the highest standard In
addition to the high design-inherent safety reserves, the X5 with its
extensive equipment offers the customer a maximum level of passive
safety. Occupant protection is ensured by up to ten airbags, including
intelligent two-stage frontal airbags and ITS head airbag,
automatic-reel three-point safety belts on all seats, belt tensioners
and belt force limiters, belt wear and seat occupancy detection as well
as ISOFIX child seat mountings. In order to avoid accidents from
happening in the first place, BMW development engineers have invested a
maximum of effort also in the active safety systems. The superior
suspension, the low vehicle centre of gravity and an almost ideal 52:48
axle load distribution are complemented by Dynamic Stability Control
(DSC), the electronic stability management system. For operation beyond
paved roads, this system has been extended to include ADB-X, the
automatic differential breake, and "Hill Descent Control"
(HDC), the intelligent downhill drive control system. ABS, Dynamic
Brake Control (DBC) and Cornering Brake Control assist the excellent
brake system of the X5 in critical situations and "Trailer
Stability Control" system permits safe driving also when towing a
trailer. It is therefore not only since the most recent successful
crash test and the impressive five-star award that we can make this
undisputed claim: The X5 offers safe, agile and comfortable handling
characteristics on both surfaced and rural roads.