Last year, we took a crack at restyling the BMW X5 using some of the styling principles of the ghastly XM, and it actually looked pretty good. Sadly, BMW doesn't give a damn about what everybody else thinks when it comes to aesthetics, but that may not be such a bad thing after all. We first saw a development mule of the latest BMW X5 M in July of last year and were thankful to discover that the grilles wouldn't be getting any bigger than they already for the facelift. In fact, spy shots have been quite regular as BMW M fine-tunes the updated model and we even posted some new ones this week. So why are we showing you spy shots again?

The answer is evident in the above images, where we see that the high-performance SUV has finally shed some skin. While past development mules were being tuned for other things, BMW is now evaluating the sporty SUV's performance attributes, which means putting your foot flat, which means the engine needs all the cooling it can get. Thanks to these new images, it's become clear that, while we were probably right about round fog lights returning to the front bumper, the bumper itself will be changing significantly so that it fits in with the rest of the latest BMW M models. This means a more angular design and something of an air curtain on each side, although this is likely only to be used for brake cooling.

BMW's clever use of camouflage and additional bodywork also now calls into question our predictions about the squared nose of the all-new G87 M2, which we now think could get a more familial face.

Little else is new, but we do see that the X5 M is getting the updated wheel design we first saw on M2 prototypes. We also expect that the side vents on the front fenders will be slightly redesigned while the rear bumper will likely get a more angular design to match the front. New headlights and taillights are definitely on their way too, while the cabin will boast iDrive 8 infotainment technology and the area under the hood will once again be occupied by a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8. We expect this refreshed model to be released later this year as part of BMW M's 50th-anniversary celebrations, so don't rule out the possibility of more power than the current 617-horsepower range-topper offers.