By Sean Nurse
If you thought the Chevrolet Lumina Ute was as cool as a Ute could be then think again, enter the BMW X5 Ute. This seemingly bizarre creature has been created by; yes you guessed it Australians, now I know as South Africans we are in no position to judge. I for one have seen a Fiat Uno turned into a Ute, carrying what seemed like way too much for a city cars suspension to handle. Then again I’m from the East Rand, even our kitchen appliances are wrapped in faux-carbon fibre. I digress.
This unique Bavarian with a hint of Billabong is the brainchild of a BMW dealership in Queensland Australia. Under that wild exterior is a first-generation X5 with a sensible oil burner under the hood. Those underpinnings should actually make this now two-door Beemer adept at performing activities expected of this type of vehicle.
Although not a factory job you would never tell (apart from the inclusion of Toyota rear windows), the finishing and build is of high quality. The exact details of the build are not known as of yet but should be released soon. This has to up there competing for the coolest Ute prize along with the Stuart Appleby’s BMW E39 M5 Ute, the Subaru Forester Ute and the Chevrolet El Camarino (see pictures).