In 2002, the third generation model was introduced which saw the model move further up-market. Initially planned and developed under BMW ownership under the project name L30, the new generation was planned as an AWD flagship accompaniment to the E65 7 Series saloon, sharing many components and systems (electronics, core power units etc), and initially packaged to accommodate BMW's coming V8D and V12 power units as future range-topping models, to complement their own X5 model, a smaller, more sporting SUV. The manual transmission was dropped entirely, leaving only the automatic transmission.
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