Infiniti QX60 vs BMW X5 M: which is more reliable?
The BMW X5 M is ahead of the Infiniti QX60 on the federal record, 84/100 against 80/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Infiniti QX60
- 11 model years scored
- 600 owner complaints on record
- about 8 complaints per year on the road
- 26 recall campaigns, 16 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (93/100) · worst 2014 (33/100)
BMW X5 M
- 7 model years scored
- 416 owner complaints on record
- about 9 complaints per year on the road
- 1 recall campaigns, 0 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (95/100) · worst 2021 (64/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: QX60 against X5 M
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Infiniti QX60
- Power Train — 190 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 108 complaints
- Engine — 105 complaints
BMW X5 M
- Engine — 103 complaints
- Power Train — 96 complaints
- Electrical System — 89 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the QX60's complaints concentrate in Power Train, the X5 M's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Infiniti QX60 — avoid: 2014.
BMW X5 M: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2013, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Infiniti QX60 prices at about $55,100 and a BMW X5 M at about $46,600 — the BMW X5 M is roughly $8,500 less, and they return 24.0 against 15.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Infiniti QX60 or the BMW X5 M more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the BMW X5 M scores 84/100 against the Infiniti QX60's 80/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Infiniti QX60 and BMW X5 M years should I avoid?
Infiniti QX60: 2014. BMW X5 M: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Infiniti QX60 and the BMW X5 M?
The largest complaint group on the Infiniti QX60 is Power Train (190 complaints); on the BMW X5 M it is Engine (103).
Is the Infiniti QX60 or the BMW X5 M cheaper to own?
A recent used Infiniti QX60 prices at about $55,100 and a BMW X5 M at about $46,600, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.