BMw has announced that production of its third-generation X5 crossover is officially underway in South Carolina.
The automaker’s Spartanburg, South Carolina, assembly plant will, at least initially, serve as the exclusive assembly plant for the popular five-door, five or seven seat crossover.
BMW says that the first X5 to roll off the line was a Mineral White X5 M50d with Exclusive Nappa Mocha leather trim, which will be headed to a dealership in Eastern Europe. The M50d is a performance-oriented diesel version of the X5 that won’t be sold in the U.S. (instead, we’ll get the X5 xDrive35d). The first batch of X5s to roll off the line aren’t initially bound for customers; instead, BMW says that it wants dealers across the globe to use the crossovers to serve as dealer demos to build interest in the new model.
BMW’s Spartanburg plant was only quiet for about a month, since the last second-generation X5 was completed on June 28. That X5, a Titanium Silver over Sand Beige leather X5 xDrive50i is bound for the automaker’s permanent collection.
In total, BMW built 728,107 second-generation X5s in Spartanburg, making the crossover the best-selling model to have been built in the nearly 20-year-old assembly plant. BMW also builds its compact X3 crossover and its style-oriented X6 crossover in Spartanburg.