It almost divides time like the birth of Christ, except in this case the acronyms stand for 'Before SUV' and 'After SUV'.

The date was 10 January, 1999.

Technically, SUVs like the Toyota LandCruiser, RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Jeep Cherokee were all alive and kicking at the time. So the BMW X5 can't really be labelled the world's first SUV.

But at the 1999 Detroit Auto Show, BMW to have invented something entirely new, something unlike all the others. It called it the "Sports Activity Vehicle", or SAV.

"The BMW X5 offered drivers an unprecedented combination of hallmark BMW dynamics and sporting ability, together with the talents of an all-wheel-drive off-roader, creating a whole new market segment in the process," the BMW website proclaims.

The original E53 X5 was unveiled at the 1999 Detroit Auto Show. Photo: BMW Group.

BMW wasn't bluffing about those off-road chops, either. It owned Land Rover at the time, so was at liberty to raid the British 4x4 parts bin. Accordingly, the first E53-generation X5 shared its hill-descent control system, off-road engine management, and two-piece split tailgate with the Range Rover.

It was a brilliant piece of design - so neat that the Chinese copied it pretty much verbatim for the 2005 Shuang-huan SCEO (BMW somehow lost the subsequent copyright lawsuit).

But other brands copied it more subtly - to the point today, Audi, Mercedes, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Lamborghini all have high-riding options in the showroom. Even Ferrari, which initially swore it would only stoop to an SUV after pooing on its founder's grave, now makes the Purosangue (they still pucker their lips in rage if you call it an SUV though).

The "Neue Klasse' fifth-generation X5 is due in Australia later this year. Photo: BMW Australia.

Enter the Neue Klasse

Decades later, the market is flooded, and the X5 has been somewhat drowned out by its own success - sitting like a quiet old retired CEO at the back of the board room. Globally, it has dropped behind the 3 Series, 5 Series, and the smaller X3 and X1 on BMW's bestseller lists.

Hence BMW's massive announcement this month, detailing "the next chapter of an iconic premium Sports Activity Vehicle".

This upcoming fifth-generation X5 comes under BMW's overarching "Neue Klasse" (New Class) project. This inherits its moniker from the original Neue Klasse of the early 1960s, back when BMW was on the verge of financial ruin and desperately needed a fresh strategy to bridge the gap between its ponderous luxury cars and tiny bubble cars like the Isetta.

The first "New Class" BMW was the 1961 1500 sedan. Photo: BMW Group.

The 1961 BMW 1500 was the first cab off the rank, for which the brand likes to claim another defining moment - this time the invention of the modern sports sedan.

Today's Neue Klasse project finally turns its back on years of messy styling to hark back to the slimmer lines and smaller kidney grilles of those 1960s icons. So it’s goodbye to the gaping pig snout, it seems.

Set to start arriving in Australia in Q4 of this year, the new X5 will eventually be available in four variants: petrol and diesel mild-hybrids, a plug-in hybrid, and - for the first time - a fully electric iX5. 

Inside, the changes are literally sweeping. A new "Panoramic Vision" system projects information across the entire lower windscreen (basically a head-up display on steroids), alongside a 3D driver display and a dedicated passenger screen.

The interior of the new X5. Photo: BMW Australia.

The "Mental" M division

Great. But what about the big question: Will there be an M version?

Doubtless. After all, there's been a Mental (okay, it doesn't actually stand for that) version of the X5 since 2009. At the time, there was a lot of hand-wringing among the "Mentalists" (our collective name for M purists). For one, it was a heavy SAV, and for another, it was both turbocharged and all-wheel drive - two features previously forbidden on proper M cars.

But high-performance haulers were always in BMW's DNA. Back in 2000, engineers built a one-off, monstrous concept of the original X5 called the Le Mans. It featured a 700-horsepower V12 pulled straight from BMW’s Le Mans-winning LMR race car, allowing it to hit 305 km/h.

The 2000 BMW X5 Le Mans. Photo: BMW M.

While the production X5 M can't match the smaller, lither M3 or M5 for pure corner carving, it has carved out a massive fan base - especially in the US, presumably for buyers whose V8 HEMI Jeeps have decided to stop working again.

Open for bidding: 2020 BMW X5 M Competition

Without that mad lineage, we wouldn't have been bequeathed the beast currently live on CARBIDS: a stunning 2020 BMW X5 M Competition.

Think of it as a standard X5 M, but with an extra dousing of Carolina Reaper hot sauce. The Competition package squeezes an extra 13 kW from the stonking 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, bringing the total to a massive 460 kW. That drops the 0-100 km/h sprint to a supercar-baiting 3.7 seconds.

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It backs up that speed with a more obnoxious active M Sport exhaust system and stiffer, track-focused suspension. Visually, it rounds out the "means business" look with gloss-black exterior trim pieces, an aggressive rear diffuser, and menacing black exhaust tips.

We can confirm the result goes, handles, and sounds like no five-seater SUV has any right to.

Sorry, SAV.

View the listing and place your bid here. Bidding closes Wednesday, 8 July.