In the early 1990s BMW’s engineering chief, Wolfgang Reitzle was hatching for a premium ‘off roader’ in the manner of the chassis Range Rover. By coincidence Land Rover made contact with BMW at the same time. The British company wanted to buy BMW’s 2.5 liter six cylinder diesel engine for use in the 1993 second generation Range Rover. Then BMW boss Bernd Pischetsrieder decided that it would better to but Land Rover than stretch the BMW brand into a new market. However, BAe, owners of Land Rover were only prepared to off-load the whole Rover Group, so BMW opted to take on the rump of the UK motor industry in 1994. However, a couple of years of troubled Land Rover ownership, and the imminent appearance of the Mercedes M class, convinced BMW to revive its own SUV project. The X5 was loosely based on the four wheel drive 1992 BMW 5 series iX Tuoring. The first X5 prototypes were actually jacked up 5 series models spotted occasionally driving from Germany to Land Rover’s British HQ. BMW’s first rate six and eight cylinder engines powered the X5.
Towards the end of its successful production run, the X5 was fitted with some very powerful engines, including 314 bhp 4.4 liter and 365 bhp 4.8 liter V8s, which further exploited its on road prowess. The X5 was built in BMW’s US plant at Spartanburg South Carolina and was received with wild enthusiasm from the press for its remarkable on road handling qualities. It’s probably fair to say that the X5 was responsible for inspiring a new market for large, road baised, pseudo off roaders.
