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Hopefully not the airbag. That's never ideal.

In the new BMW X5 M50d MSport it's the engine that thumps you squarely on the conk. There's more grunt on tap than from a pen of hungry pigs.

From any revs, at any speed, there's enough shove to seemingly spin the Earth off its axis.

That's an exaggeration but it's close. BMW has been making a habit of building stonking diesel engines but this latest variant fitted to the rangetopping, new-look M50d X5 takes things a step further.

There's a nifty three-stage single turbo under the bonnet that's designed to cope with varying loads and revs.

Normally with a turbo the way to make big power gains is with a big charger and big boost pressures. These are always rubbish at low revs though as they struggle to spin up to speed. The opposite is true of a small turbo unit. BMW's solution covers all the bases.

The net result is knock-out torque plus power by the skip-full with no sensation of the dreaded lag anywhere. Ever. You'd swear blind this was a seven-litre V8 petrol engine if it wasn't for the gruff, bassy engine note when it's working hard. It sounds like a lowlevel fly past from a Spitfire. But you never really have to work it hard except, perhaps, during overtakes when it offers up an epic video gamestyle burst of power and surreal speed.

I say surreal because the X5 is a big old girl. Tipping the bathroom scales at 2.2 tonnes there's a lot of car to haul but this engine makes light work of it. And all from just 2,996cc. Amazing.

The 0-62 time of a gnat's gnudger off five seconds is supercar territory. Nuff said. The rest of the new X5 probably warrants mention too.

The re-styling? I'll let you be the judge. BMW claims this, the third generation X5, offers a higher level of standard equipment than the outgoing model. While it's roughly £2,500 dearer, this equates to approximately £4,000 worth of new kit thrown in.

All engines across the range are EU6 compliant and offer better MPG and CO2 figures. Aerodynamics are improved too. Speaking of which, fans of Roger's Profanisaurus might be interested to know the new X5 is fitted with vertical air curtains!

Like the original X5 launched in 1999, this new one is still an SUV that handles. You can take it by the scruff of the neck and chuck it into corners if you want. Your passengers might not thank you but the X5 copes well. There's masses of grip, braking power and body control.

Inside, the quality of the trim in the cabin is pretty lush - as befits a car aimed at this end of the market.

There's loads of headroom front and back, plus 650 litres of boot space with the seats up and 1,870 litres with them folded flat. Mahoosive.

Keen towists might be interested to hear it'll drag 3.5 tonnes (braked) and with this tri-turbo diesel engine fitted it won't even notice if you do.

Prices start at £42,590 and it's in the shops from November 16. An eightspeed auto box is standard and it's up to you whether you have it with fourwheel drive. Bearing in mind the recent winters, the four grand xDrive option is probably a no-brainer.

BMW X5 M50d xDrive

Price: £63,920

Engine: 2,993cc 6-cyl triple turbo

Power: 381bhp

Torque: 740Nm

Top speed: 155mph (limited)

0-62mph: 5.3 secs

Economy: 44.8mpg combined

CO2: 177g/km

Good for: Bonkers M50d engine

Against: Old X5 was prettier

Sum up: Dynamically better all round