New BMW X5: Electric, Plug-In, Petrol, Diesel… and Hydrogen

BMW is about to make the X5 the most flexible family in its class. In one model line, buyers will be able to choose between battery electric, plug-in hybrid, petrol, diesel, and hydrogen fuel cell power. That is not a checklist for the future; it is BMW’s way of saying different drivers in different regions need different solutions, and they are willing to build them all. It is also a signal that the X5 is moving from a single product into a versatile platform that meets you where you live, how you drive, and what your local energy mix looks like.

Inside BMW, leaders are open about why this matters. Not every customer can rely on dense fast-charging networks or home charging. Some want long-distance convenience without a learning curve. Others want zero-local-emissions driving with the character of a traditional BMW. Offering five drive choices turns the X5 into a practical path toward lower emissions without forcing a one-size-fits-all answer.

The hydrogen chapter is especially interesting. After a global pilot, BMW is preparing the iX5 Hydrogen to enter series production. The fuel cell stack comes from a third-generation system co-developed with Toyota, designed to be more compact and more efficient while delivering stronger performance. Prototypes are already being assembled in Munich and at the BMW Group Plant Steyr, with key components supplied by Landshut. In simple terms, the car aims to refuel in minutes like petrol or diesel while driving quietly like an electric vehicle.

None of this works without a place to refuel, so BMW is also helping build the hydrogen ecosystem. The HyMoS initiative, short for Hydrogen Mobility at Scale, brings industry and institutional partners together to cluster demand from trucks, buses, and passenger cars around shared refueling stations. The idea is straightforward: combine volumes so stations stay busy, reliable, and profitable. Pilot work is underway in Germany and France with the goal of moving into more metro areas next.

If you are shopping an X5 in the next product cycle, the takeaway is simple: you will not be locked into a single path. Choose the battery electric model if your charging is easy, pick the plug-in hybrid for mixed routines, stay with petrol or diesel for long-range simplicity, or go hydrogen as stations arrive in your city. It is a technology-open strategy designed to make progress feel natural rather than forced.