Try this one for size: a straight six, tri-turbo engine, punching out 740 Newton metres of torque and 280kW. This is what you’ll find nestling under the bonnets of BMW’s four latest latest M Performance cars.

South Africa won’t be getting two of them – the M550d xDrive Sedan and M550d xDrive Touring. Our shores will be graced by the X5 M50d and X6 M50d, however. The tri-turbo engines are mated to an eight-speed Sports automatic transmission and BMW’s all-wheel drive xDrive system, which promises to help put all that power down more effectively.

BMW say that its the most powerful diesel engine ever fitted to one its models, and that the driver will be able to access the monstrous 740Nm torque figure from as early as 2000rpm. Another first for the brand, is the use of three turbochargers.

The BMW M550d xDrive Sedan accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds, while the BMW M550d xDrive Touring covers the same sprint in 4.9 seconds. The claimed consumption figure for the sedan is  6.3l/100km, while the Touring consumes a tad more – at 6.4 l/100 km.

Acceleration times are slightly lengthier in BMW’s Sports Activity Vehicles, obviously due to their added bulk. The X5 M50d will get from 0-100km/h in 5.4 seconds, while the X5 M50d will do the sprint in 5.3 seconds. But that’s still quite impressive. Average fuel consumption stands at 7.5l/100km for the X5 and 7.7 l/100 km for the X6 – slightly above the figures for the existing diesel variants of the two models.

No BMW model with an M badge would be complete without some visual drama. These models are set apart by M light-alloy wheels, exterior mirrors and air intake bars with striking Ferric Grey metallic paintwork, trapezoidal exhaust tailpipes and M emblems on the rear and engine cover.

These M cars’ innards also get a sporty reworking. There are M logos on the gearshift lever and steering wheel, and exclusive M sports seats – Black Alcantara/Nappa leather for the X5 and X6, Alcantara/Cloth in Grey Shadow with contrast stitching and embossed M logos for the 5-series.

Various driver assistance systems and mobility services from BMW ConnectedDrive also feature – internet access,  integration of smartphones and music players and apps for receiving web radio and using Facebook and Twitter.