One of Geneva’s quickest SUV was actually unveiled at the end of last month, when Alpina presented their take on the BMW X3, dubbing it the XD3.

What stands out about this car – aside from the obvious exterior mods which include the bumpers, wheels and decals – is the performance. The XD3 comes with a quad-turbo 3.0-liter diesel unit, putting down 388 horses and a whooping 770 Nm (567 lb-ft) of torque with the help of an 8-speed automatic and a modded xDrive system.

Zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) takes just 4.6 seconds, and the top speed has been unlocked to 266 km/h (165 mph). These numbers, by the way, reflect the performance of the LHD cars, whereas RHD models only get two turbochargers for 333 HP and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft) of torque, resulting in a 0-100 sprint time of 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 254 km/h (157 mph).

Customers who would rather not wait until deliveries for the XD3 start (next year), can still opt for BMW’s own X3 xDrive30d, which means hitting 100 km/h in 5.8 seconds and maxing out at 240 km/h (149 mph).

Still, if it’s diesel power you crave from the BMW X3, either version of the Alpina XD3 should satisfy your straight line needs quite nicely. As for when the roads become twisty, the German tuner will happily point to the SUV’s custom sport suspension, with electronically adjustable dampers and active rear limited slip differential.

Photo Credits: Guido ten Brink – SB-Medien / Alpina