Compare the2024 Audi SQ5VS 2024 BMW X5 M

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi SQ5 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW X5 M doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the SQ5 and X5 M have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The SQ5 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The X5 M’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

Both the SQ5 and the X5 M have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the SQ5 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 98 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The X5 M last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2022.

On the EPA test cycle the SQ5 gets better fuel mileage than the X5 M Competition (19 city/24 hwy vs. 13 city/18 hwy).

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Audi SQ5 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The X5 M requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

For better maneuverability, the SQ5’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the X5 M’s (38.7 feet vs. 42 feet).

The Audi SQ5 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1150 pounds less than the BMW X5 M.

The SQ5 is 10.5 inches shorter than the X5 M, making the SQ5 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The SQ5 has 1.1 inches more front legroom and .6 inches more rear legroom than the X5 M.

The SQ5’s liftgate lifts up in one piece, completely out of the way of loading and unloading, while sheltering the cargo loading area. The X5 M’s tailgate’s top part raises up, but the bottom part lowers, getting in the way of loading and making an uneven surface for sliding cargo.

The SQ5 has a 4400 lbs. towing capacity. The X5 M has no towing capacity.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the SQ5 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The X5 M doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The SQ5’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the X5 M’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Marginal.”

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The SQ5 Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The X5 M doesn’t offer headlight washers.