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BMW has unveiled a concept car it calls Vision EfficientDynamics, an extensively modified X5 four-wheel drive which showcases the next stage of BMW's plan to reduce the emissions of its vehicles while at the same time enhancing their performance. The Vision is a mild hybrid, a 20bhp electric motor supplementing a 2.0 litre four cylinder twin turbodiesel to produce a combined power output of 224bhp, which is enough to enable the Vision X5 to reach 62mph in a very brisk 8.9sec. More significantly, it produces 172g/km of CO2, a massive reduction on the 272g/km produced by the six cylinder 284bhp X5 3.0sd, currently the most economical version of the off-roader.

The electric motor produces vastly more torque than it does horsepower, its 155lb ft providing acceleration assistance for what is a very small capacity diesel engine for a vehicle this big. Fuel consumption and emissions are further reduced by an eight-speed transmission, allowing the engine to operate more efficiently more of the time. The lithium-ion battery pack, which is stored under the boot floor, is charged only when the car is coasting or braking, and also by photovoltaic solar panels in the roof. The result is that the air conditioning, electric power steering and electric coolant pumps, all of which operate on a 120 volt system in parallel with the X5's conventional 12 volt set-up, can be run using 'free' energy. None of these systems is hugely radical, and that is the point of this vehicle - we can expect to see these technologies relatively soon, as BMW rolls out the next stage of its Efficient Dynamics initiative. This programme has already significantly reduced the emissions of the entire BMW and Mini ranges, making the company one of the fastest-improving in the world in this regard.