We review the BMW M5 from price to economy and all its features
THIS is the BMW businessman saloon that can out-power a FERRARI.
It took 400 M Sport engineers three years and TWO MILLION hours to develop the powertrain for the new M5.
No wonder it is the best M Sport car ever built — and I’ve just had a mind-blowing first drive in Seville.
It’s the fifth generation of Beemer’s iconic performance saloon flagship and uses the latest twin-turbo 4.4litre V8 engine which may be two cylinders and 600cc short of the previous M5’s 5litre V10, but it delivers MORE power than ever before.
Maximum output is up 45bhp and now peaks at 552bhp, while torque takes an even more significant leap to 502lb ft from 384lb ft which gives the M5 the most incredible immediate power.
That’s almost 100bhp more than Ferrari California which produces 453bhp and the same as a Lamborghini Gallardo.
But the real talent of this M5 is that it provides the brute force dynamics of a trackday car with the civility and comfort of a true grand tourer. BMW say that 80 per cent of the M5 is new — all the business-like suit of the 5 Series but cut from a very different cloth.
On the tempting flat roads which snake through the desert-like Seville region on the way to the Ascari race circuit, it proved it is pure Jekyll and Hyde — or perhaps Jekyll and Five.
A gentle push of the Start button on the dash unleashes a meaningful grumble which makes the chassis shake, like sitting on a raging bull.
Even calm taps on the accelerator result in a huge surge of power. Whack the right foot down and the Beemer turns into a screamer.
It goes from business to show business. By absolutely monstering off the line, it turns landscapes into a liquidiser of colour with 0-60mph in 4.4 seconds — but I think it could be even faster than that.
It thrust me back into my seat and left my legs numb with the force of acceleration and it feels like an endless supply of power right up to 155mph. Beemer say that without the electronic limiter the M5 would top 190mph.
Overtaking is simply effortless thanks to the savage power — the vital head-up display might as well have flashed up points on my licence rather than the speed I was going.
At times it felt like I was trying to hang on to a Rottweiler which hasn’t eaten for a week. It’s big and heavy and is a real handful when you take corners at speed. Yet, thanks to beefed-up suspension and other techno tweaks, it handles with precision and immense grip.
The dual-clutch gearbox is great, though. It makes near-instant full-throttle upshifts, and is much slicker than the old single-clutch manual gearbox. This is partly what makes the M5 so impressive — when you just want to plod along the auto box does all the work for you.
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When it’s not being a bruiser, it‘s a cruiser. A lot of the appeal of the M5 will be its ability to carry four people in comfort. Hit the motorway with the softest suspension setting, and the ride quality and overall refinement are close to what you’d expect from a standard premium saloon.
The body kit also caters for all tastes. It has all the normal 5 Series look with pin-stripe business-like grille — but this is a suit with a few rips and slashes with a splash of Vivienne Westwood. This muscle car shows off all its pecs and five-pack with crisp, sharp extra air instakes at the front, bulging wheel arches, double chrome tailpipes and 19in charcoal alloys to die for. It’s imposing, but not OTT.
It’s the same inside. A full leather interior and bespoke sports seats with embossed M Sport logos while the large head-up display and BMW’s iDrive control system allows you to trawl through the vast infotainment menus while keeping your eyes on the road ahead.
There’s a dazzling array of techno wizardry that would confuse Stephen Hawking. It’s all at your fingertips in a horseshoe arrangement of switches situated around the gearstick and it gives you instant access to gearshift-speed, suspension and steering-weight settings.
Additionally, there are two M buttons located on the fat rimmed steering wheel. Each can be programmed through the iDrive to give separate comfort or performance settings at the push of the appropriate button.
But you won’t be sitting comfortably at the cost. As sensational as it is, £73,040 is a lot of money for the ultimate 5 Series.
And running costs would leave you in bigger debt than Greece. The old M5 delivered 15mpg if you drove like a granny, BMW reckon this new model will hit 28mpg if driven conservatively and emits 232g/km. In reality I reckon I got just over 20mpg at best.
That means the 535d Sport, which is still very quick but £25k cheaper and twice as economical at the pumps, is probably a more sensible choice. Equally, the M5 has the same power as the Ferrari California and Gallardo yet is more than £70k cheaper.
But if you’re lucky enough to able to afford an M5, who cares about sensible? This M5 loses the rawness of the previous model but gains more ability to be a car for all moods, all occasions. It’s the business.