AS POPULAR as sports-utility vehicles have become, growing concerns about climate change have made the economy-challenged 4x4s occasional targets of environmental vigilantes in the West.

In the past three years or so, SUVs in the United States and Europe have been spray-painted with graffiti (from CFC-free cans, no doubt), pelted with eggs (from free-range chickens no less) and had their tyres slashed (heaven forbid, not with blades made in Chinese sweat shops).

In a couple of instances, the 'greenies' even threw caution and carbon neutrality to the wind and set fire to SUV showrooms.

BMW must be patting itself on the back then, for having named its X5 a 'sports-activity vehicle' (SAV) when it rolled out its forest-clearing (double entendre intended) bruiser in 1999.

Which might explain why it has launched Part II with impunity - despite the new car being bigger, badder and more ballistic than before.

The latest X5 is 6.8cm broader and 18.7cm longer, which allows it to have a third row of seats - although the last row is best for occupants too young to know what ozone is. Back there, junior is literally out of sight, almost completely eclipsed by the huge second-row seats.

There are two engine choices: a 4.8-litre V8 and a 3-litre V6. Buyers - preferably those with carbon credits - should pick the ballsy V8, which sends the X5 to 100kmh in 6.5 seconds.

That's pretty swift by any standard, but for a 2.2-tonne behemoth with all-time all-wheel-drive seating seven, it is simply phenomenal.

In fact, the timing is better than what Porsche can pull off with its 4.8-litre five-seater Cayenne S (which incidentally is heftier by 60kg or so).

The X5 has always been a driver's joy, but the new model is noticeably more agile and responsive, thanks to a new suspension geometry.

Behind the wheel, you are aware you are perched high like a mahout on his mount, but the humongous beast surprises with its deftness and dexterity.

Its V8 packs 11 per cent more punch than its predecessor's and yet BMW claims the X5 4.8i consumes 5 per cent less fuel: 17.5 litres for every 100km in the city.

But the test-drive unit could not do any better than 20 litres, despite stretches of highway driving.

Par for the course, perhaps, for a car with its sterling performance. The X5 will beat many 'sports cars' on a straight line sprint and, despite its tall and raised stance, take corners with aptitude.

While its brakes are formidable, the car often stops with a diving action that is a tad jarring. But as long as it is on the move, it compensates with a superb ride.

The 4.8i comes with self-levelling suspension, so its nose won't go skywards even if you are lugging a couple of sumos in the rear.

A new electronic gear shifter, first seen here on the revised 5-series, is silky smooth. It betrays none of the unnerving thud and clunk sometimes felt and heard in the previous mechanism.

The new car gets an electronic parking brake too.

Cars here are fitted with active steering, even the 3.0 V6 variant. This variable-ratio feature tightens your rein on the car at saner speeds and makes manoeuvres in tight confines effortless.

In the X5, active steering does not feel as abrupt as it does in 3- and 5-series cars.

The X5 seats are as easy to manipulate as in any well-made MPV. The second row can tilt, slide and fold to make getting in and out of the third row a cinch.

And the third row can become totally flat to reveal a sizeable stowage area. With all seats up, the car's cargo-carrying capability becomes Lilliputian.

Other standard features include head-up display (with adjustable angle now), rear-view camera (with tracking lines that will help you dock a spacecraft) and a cruise control that actually applies the brakes when necessary to maintain set speed (such as going downhill).

The car has a split tailgate to facilitate loading, but there is no push-button closing this time. The glovebox has split covers, which add a cool factor to the updated cabin.

The interior boasts a far better fit and finish than before, apart from one minor niggle. Its twin flip-up lids on the armrest storage bin, a neat design carried over from the last model, are beset with latches which are dodgy.

You could say that very word describes the current reputation of SUVs. But the X5 isn't an SUV, remember?

BMW X5 4.8i
Price: $348,800 with COE
Engine: 4,799cc 32-valve V8
Transmission: Six-speed Steptronic
Power: 355bhp at 6,300rpm
Torque: 475Nm at 3,500rpm
0-100kmh: 6.5 seconds
Top speed: 240kmh (electronically limited)
Fuel consumption: 17.5 litres/100km (city)
Agent: Performance Motors