2011 BMW X3 Side-By-Side With Its Rivals, Who Looks Best?

The BMW does look good compared to the Mercedez and Audi. I think the Lexus RX is a close second here.

Styling wise

Front end: Audi Q5
Side: Audi Q5
Rear End: BMW X3
Interior: Lexus RX.

So overall Audi Q5 looks best. XC60 is not included here but that looks as good as Audi Q5 to me. GLK is the ugliest.

JUGNU

X3 it looks very clean and sporty.

Q5- especially the S-line.....

They're all for sorority girls anyway. Except the Lexus, that's for soccer moms.

X3,Q5,RX,GLK

"notice anything interesting in the shots?" uhh, the GLK looks horrible?

lol @ everyone who says the Q5 looks like a Tucson, the X3 could easily pass for a Hyundai/Kia SUV

The A5 looks like a Hyundai.

the BMW looks like a Daihatsu Charade, beat that!

Should've included the XC60. That's a good looking Volvo.

Face- Q5
Side- Q5
Rear- X3
Interior- X3. Equal quality materials as Audi, better ergonomics/interior space/utlity and much better technology (nav screen size, res, etc.)

001

one thing I noticed is the X3 and some of the new MB's seem to be having trouble with the new pedestrain safety standards or whatever, that snout looks bad, same as the CLS....

1) Q5
2) GLK
3) X3
4) Harrier

I would like to see the X3 with M sport package....and not a fan of the other three competitors at all!

Beauty must be in the eye of the beholder.
Just ordered a Q5. Looked at the X3, Touareg and Cayenne. Maybe it was a stripper, but the X3 I saw at the LA autoshow was not as well finished as the Q5. Coming from a pre-Bangle first gen X5, which I feel looks better than any of them.

There's no such thing as a "pre-Bangle" X5. He created it. Was the chief designer at BMW from 1992-2009!

With the exception of the GLK, which I think is quite awkward looking, it's pretty much a toss-up in an rather uninspiring category. The RX gets a little push towards 3rd because of the tiresome Altezza-like tail lights. I wish they were all the same color, cause I think the BMW would look better in black with it's black bumpers and trim.

X3 looks better than I expected next to Q5, But I think in these Pics Q5 still looks a little better. But If they put a M packaged X3 there, the result might be very different.
No Comment for GLK. It is just ugly in every way.

Q5





RX - Looks so bloated compared to others. Like it doesnt fit in this category.
X3
GLK

X3 is the best looking. More suv like then the Audi.

Asking which is the most beautiful SUV is like asking which is the most articulate vegetable :-)

The X3 is the newest one there but it doesn't stand out all that much.

...but is still stands out.

Any particular reason you left out a decent looking vehicle like the Volvo XC60 but included the homely Mercedes GLK?

mercedes is scary square.
lexus is just plain boring.

audi and x3 are both good looking. it's a toss up between the two. final decision would depend entirely on how they drive.

I'd call it a tie between the Q5 and the X3. But the GLK is way too hideous.

I'm not a fan of the RX either, and I do like the Q5, but based on your rankings your statement seems a little hypocritical. The RX is built on the Camry platform, but isn't the Q5 built on the Tiguan platform? There isn't a Toyota version of the RX for sale, either, but there is a VW version of the Q5. So if one car is just a more expensive version of a lesser brand, wouldn't that actually apply as much or more to the Q5 as the RX?

wrong, the Q5 is built on the A4 chassis, which is in no way shared with any VW. The Tiguan is built on the fwd transverse Golf chassis....

lol @ getting deboosted for stating facts, and isn't the RX built on the Highlander platform which is shared with the Camry?

JRob - please research the facts before you post here. The Q5 is definitely not based on the Tiguan or any other VW platform. And if you google "Toyota Harrier" you will see that the Lexus RX has always been a rebadged Toyota until the latest redesign when Toyota decided to introduce the Lexus brand to the Japanese market. Either way, it is still based the Camry.

I'm well aware that Lexus didn't exist outside the U.S. until a few years ago, and that the vehicles we Americans know as Lexuses were sold elsewhere as Toyotas. That's not the case anymore. As for Audi and VW sharing platforms with the Tiguan/Q5, if you noticed in my post I asked it in question form. It's called "reading comprehension", give it a try. Whether the Q5 and Tiguan share or not, there is plenty of sharing in the Audi/VW lineups. They've diverged somewhat in recent years but they do/did just as much sharing as Toyota and Lexus. So come down off your soapbox.

but your whole post is based on that statement which you assume to be correct, you were incorrect on both accounts....way to play it off...

aaronymous, "isn't the Q5 built on the Tiguan platform?" is a question. See the "?" symbol at the end? There, I just used one again. If the Tiguan and Q5 don't share a chassis, fine, but the point is it's hypocritical to say you won't consider one brand who shares platforms while simultaneously praising another brand that does the same thing. And Audi/VW do, in fact, share. The Q7 IS built on a Toureg platform. For years the Jetta, Passat, Beetle, Phaeton, etc. shared platforms and components with Audi's. That was my point. Nowhere did I say I had a problem with them doing it, I even said I liked the Q5. My problem was with someone saying they wouldn't ever consider "an overpriced Toyota" while at the same time putting an Audi high on his list, when Audi does the same thing. Maybe not with that particular model, but they still do it. Are we clear now or do I need to type slower?

pretty much perfectly backwards. 9 is 1 and 1 is 9.

so at least you're consistent in your lack of taste.

well, that's nice. but the almighty dollar and those in the design community disagree with you.

no, sporte, it's not. the germans sell at premium prices to the lexus. and the germans are very profitable (no idea on lexus as they don't release profits...wonder why). in other words, people will part with more dollars to drive the bmw and the audi over the lexus.

Wow and the RX350 outsells all of them combined.........

know: the RX does NOT outsell them all combined. however, it is the biggest seller. and here's a news flash for you: cheaper products sell more volume. but when you talk ability to charge premium prices and profitability, the germans win.

Having seen the new X3 in person I can say its the best looking in this group. BMW really did a nice job.

I agree. Even though I was always a Q5 Lover and MB is still my favorite premium brand, I think BMW did very well with the X3 and X5.

No I didn't understand, please try to be a little more condescending, that's always a good internet forum approach...

It's obvious that we were talking about these specific models and he referred to the RX with his Toyota jab. Yes you asked a question but then you assumed you knew the answer and then couldn't resist the old "Audi is a VW" approach....very original! Ohhh they share the platform with a VW!!!!

You know what? I was trying to be on your side. Twice now I've said I liked the Q5, and was talking only about the principle of platform sharing and the hypocrisy of praising one brand who does it while chastising another. If you can't comprehend that after multiple posts, then yes, I'm gonna be condescending. Deservedly so.

Considering your brand affiliation, you ought to be embracing anyone who is defending platform sharing, not splitting hairs over which particular models do so. Get it? Good.

X3
Q5
GLK

If only the Lexus had the looks of the Q5, it would end this discussion. The RX offers the best package but is just plain boring.

....boring to look at that is.

As an MB Fan, this hurts, but I have to honest, The worst is the GLK. The Best looking from that pack, for me is the Q5.