Years ago, I remember reading an article about a journalist talking to a BMW M engineer back in the ’90s, asking if there would ever … Years ago, I remember reading an article about a journalist talking to a BMW M engineer back in the ’90s, asking if there would ever be a BMW M8 made from the original E31 8 Series. The man from BMW M said no, citing its weight as the reason. The 8 Series was just too heavy to be a proper M car back then. Apparently, the M engineers a few decades later missed the memo because they created an M car out of, at the time, the brand’s heaviest vehicles — the BMW X5 M and X6 M. I was always a bit curious as to why BMW M would do such a thing. I’ve also wondered why BMW M hasn’t worked its magic on the smaller, more nimble X3. Now, though, I needn’t worry any longer, as the BMW X3 M is finally here. This current generation of BMW X3 must be the most deserving of BMW M treatment. While the brand-new X5 might be the best BMW SUV overall, the current X3 i...

Let’s start this review out buy saying the new-generation of BMW X5 (G05) is excellent. It’s everything I hoped it would be and then some. … Let’s start this review out buy saying the new-generation of BMW X5 (G05) is excellent. It’s everything I hoped it would be and then some. But before we talk about it and how good it is, we have to take a short trip backward, into the past, for a bit of a history lesson on the original X5 (E53). Back in 1999, BMW released its first ever SUV. Not only did it release its first ever SUV but that very SUV was the first BMW to ever be built in America at the brand’s then-new Spartanburg, South Carolina plant. Now, Spartanburg is a powerhouse of manufacturing, building all of BMW’s rear-drive SUVs for the entire world market. In fact, it’s one of the largest auto manufacturing plants in the U.S., regardless of brand, and the X5 is one of BMW’s best-selling, most important vehicles. In hindsight, it’s easy to see how much of a slam dunk all of thi...