BMW SUV Range

The BMW XM is BMW's flagship SUV, and a standalone M model. It also carries a plug-in hybrid V8 powertrain.

BMW customers have two ways of charging their iX at home, the fastest being by installing a three-phase 22kW AC wall charger. These cost between $1500 to $3000, with additional energy costs averaging between 21-36 cents per kW, depending on your provider and which state you live in. If you’re hooked up to solar power, the additional cost can be zero. According to BMW, this method will charge the iX xDrive40 from 0-100 per cent in 8 hours and 15 minutes. The other method is a standard AC wall socket, which charges at a much slower rate of 2.3kW. BMW says this will take 39 hours for a full charge.

The biggest determining factor in how a car copes with tougher terrain is driver behaviour. Drive the car sensibly, sympathetically and to the conditions and you'll be amazed where most cars will happily take you. But get it wrong and drive in a ham-fisted way, and even the roughest, toughest four-wheel-drive will suffer and fail.

The BMW X5 is a soft-roader at best, but should definitely have the suspension to tackle rough roads (as opposed to off-road). The biggest challenge will be the tyres fitted. Many of these vehicles had huge wheels with tyres with very little sidewall. These tyres are easily damaged on rough roads.

Since luggage space is not a critical issue for you, I'd suggest buying a full-sized spare tyre that fits the car, as the SUV's usual space-saver or tyre repair kit can be fairly useless in such conditions. But you also need to be honest about your intentions. By mud and water, do you mean the odd puddle, or 10km of rutted farm track with bog-holes for good measure? If there's any off-road work at all, then you need an off-road four-wheel-drive, not an SUV.