AC Schnitzer turns up the temperature on BMW X5

There’s always been an element of jazz hands about the BMW X5. The model is 25 years old this year and arguably only Land Rover has a firmer grip on the modern SUV’s origin story than the car BMW built with its help. It feels like it has been around forever, and as a consequence of its long lifespan, virtually everything that has happened to SUVs since 1999 has already happened to it. And that includes a whole heap of go-faster modifications, including the one-off, V12-powered X5 LM that was already a thing in 2000. 

Anyway, the point is we’re now up to the fourth generation of BMW’s trendsetter, and there’s been no letup in the tinkering. Obviously, you can have an X5 M if you’re adamant that the car needs a 617hp 4.4-litre V8 to do its thing. But there are plenty of aftermarket options too, including a new tuning programme from AC Schnitzer, which uses the model’s recent-ish Life Cycle Impulse to have another go at making it go (and look) that bit quicker. 

In terms of output, we’re inevitably talking about software code rather than nuts and bolts, but for owners of the oil-burning 40d it means going from 352hp/531lb ft to 382hp/575lb ft, or – if you’ve already transitioned to the pleasures of plug-in hybrids – you can go from 489hp/516lb ft in a standard 50e to 551hp/590lb ft. The tuner makes no claims for the associated performance uplift, but on the basis that both provide you with more torque than X5 M owners get (i.e. 553lb ft) we’re going to say that both are fairly brisk. 

If that doesn’t stop you casting envious looks in the direction of the M-specific bodykit, you’ll be delighted (and not surprised) to hear there is a full range of aerodynamic parts also on offer, including a new front splitter, side skirt and roof spoiler – and a choice of 22-inch AC5 Flowforming rims in BiColor or gloss black. Or you can keep the standard wheels and Schnitzer will sell you some wheel spacers that gain you 12mm more width per side at the back. And if you’ve done without the BMW-supplied air suspension, there are spring kits that lower any applicable X5 by up to 30mm. So the X5 gets older, the more it stays the same. Refer to AC Schnitzer’s website for local stockists and prices.