M50i xDrive

STORY

The BMW X5 changed what a BMW could be. Launched in 1999 as the E53, it was BMW's first SUV, but the company refused to call it one, coining the term "Sports Activity Vehicle" to signal that it drove like a BMW, not a truck. Developed during BMW's ownership of Land Rover, it borrowed off-road know-how while prioritising on-road handling.

The gamble paid off enormously. The X5 essentially created the premium performance-SUV segment and became one of BMW's best-sellers, spawning an entire X-family of the X3, X6, X1 and more that now accounts for a huge share of the company's sales. Few individual models have reshaped a carmaker's business as thoroughly as the first X5.