Take two large luxury SUVs with a V8 each, strapped with turbochargers, hand them to Bavaria’s high-performance division to tweak the dynamics and turn up the boost on the blowers, and you have a healthier supply of power from the added M vitamins. Having a go on track would show how wholesome they really are; so we did just that.
Story: Jim Gorde
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
The funny thing with cars is, no matter how good you think one is, there’s someone who always thinks there’s more to do. Thankfully, BMW are a brand that focus on driving pleasure, the sheer kind too, and that makes their cars lovely to be in, especially if you like to drive. Now, as always, there will be a few blokes who would want even more from whatever it is they’re looking at. Sports coupé? Add a 100 more horsepower. Big SUV? Let’s tweak the dampers and fettle the other bits as well and squeeze out even more power. Thankfully, these guys are from the M Division, BMW’s in-house tuners, and they are nuts about power. And, the 4.4-litre TwinPower Turbo V8, which otherwise makes 407 450 PS in the 50i versions, now makes 125 more in M guise. Whoopee!
Let’s start with the basics, though. The X5 is a big car whichever way you look at it, and it was probably the first big off-road looking vehicle in the world that actually behaved like a car on the move. So it always had that going for it. There have been more generations, but now, the new X5, which is a fun car by any standard, has been fettled by the M people and the result, the second-generation X5 M, is something anyone with a boy-racing driver inside will truly enjoy.
Butch, beefy and very BMW, the X5 looks the part. The X5 M adds more racy elements, or rather takes away from anything that adds more weight and restricts aero. The front bumper and lower air dam have more gaping intakes and sport a sharper finish, and there’s a revised kidney with the M garnish.
The new X6 M also gets similar treatment with a sportier front bumper and air dam. We drove the diesel X6 only last month, so this was indeed a treat. Not only does the M version drink petrol instead of oil, but it also boasts of two more cylinders, 247 more horses and 120 Nm more torque. Yes, it does weigh 160 kg more, too, but the power difference is too great for that to matter, like a couple of extra drops of olive oil to your salad dressing. It’s still very healthy!
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