The BMW M5 has been the benchmark for high performance saloon cars pretty much since the genre was invented. The last model faced a formidable challenge from the latest Mercedes-AMG E 63, but the new M5 has upped its game and is back at the top of the heap. As it’s based on the fantastic 5 Series, it’s no surprise the M5 has few peers as executive transport. Dial in the phenomenal power and torque, and the stupendous grip generated by the new 4x4 drivetrain, and the breadth of the M5’s ability is simply breathtaking. The downside? It’s pricey, technically complicated and expensive to run. Which if you can afford it, is no downside at all…
The M5 saloon is a variant of the 5 Series model range, and as such shares a platform with the larger 7 Series making it bigger and more spacious than its predecessor. Thanks to a lot of aluminium in the body, the 5 Series as a whole is 100kgs lighter than the previous generation car, although the M5 version is only 50kgs lighter thanks to its new 4x4 drivetrain.
The styling has taken an evolutionary step forward, and while the new models look rather similar to the last ones, the latest headlamps and rear lamps are obviously inspired by the 7 Series.
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Upgrading to M5 spec brings some obvious visual enhancements to the car’s exterior, most notably a carbon fibre roof which is part of a weight saving package. Other eye-catching features include the big 20-inch alloy wheels, a BMW M ‘kidney’ grille with high gloss double slats, black door mirrors with aerodynamic winglets and twin tailpipes at the rear.
Owners will also enjoy the M upgrades over the standard 5 Series inside, starting with the luxurious multi-adjustable sports seats and the double-spoke M design steering wheel. There’s also a black Alcantara headlining, while stainless steel pedals add to the sporty feel. You also get an M setting on the head-up display, and the instrument pack is configured especially for the M5 too.
Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment
The M5 comes with a big tablet-style 10.25-inch touchscreen, which has an M-specific interface design, while the head-up display also has an M setting which includes gear indicator, RPM range curve and shift point indicator. BWM’s Professional Navigation set-up is standard, and you also get a 12-month subscription to BMW Connected services including BMW apps, Emergency Call and Concierge Services. There’s Bluetooth connectivity and wireless charging too, and you can use your M5 as a WiFi hot spot.
Let’s get one thing out of the way first. Perhaps in the expectation of outrage from its legions of rear-wheel drive enthusiasts, BMW has added a pure ‘two-wheel drive’ setting to the M5 xDrive system. Use it, and the M5 behaves pretty much as you’d expect from any car that sends 592bhp to the rear wheels, producing lurid on-demand drifts and lots of expensive tyre smoke. BMW suggests the setting is for track use only, which seems sensible.
For the road there are 4WD and 4WD Sport modes, the latter adding a bit more rear bias to the set-up with the result that enthusiastic drivers might well forget they’ve got xDrive at all. Sending torque to the front wheels helps the M5 accelerate cleanly off the line, as well as under extreme conditions when traction is at a premium. However, the BMW retains the overall feel and balance of a rear-drive car, and it rewards enthusiastic drivers with agility and poise that belies its considerable bulk. Only the steering disappoints a little, for while it’s well-weighted and direct, it provides insufficient feedback or feel as to what the front wheels are doing.
As well as control of the xDrive settings, drivers get three increasingly sporty settings each for the steering, suspension and engine response, as well as three settings for the gearbox in both auto and sequential manual modes. In spite of all the performance, when you leave things in comfort mode there’s enough compliance in the suspension to let the M5 ride supremely comfortably over challenging British road surfaces – the only niggle being a slightly jiggly low speed ride thanks to the huge 20-inch alloy wheels.
Use the engine hard and the M5 rewards with a screaming exhaust note that sounds more highly-strung than the rival AMG E Class’s throaty rumble, and this becomes even more prominent in the M5 Competition which adds a sportier exhaust. We’d recommend the Competition version in spite of its cost, as it also adds a worthwhile additional edge to the suspension, resulting in more precise handling and body control that’s startlingly impressive. Coupled to the awesome accelerative power of the mighty V8, and helped out by the Active M differential that keeps cornering lines tight, the M5 can dispatch a twisting road at speeds that are other-worldly.
Ceramic brakes are a pricey option at £7,500, but they provide all the reassurance you could need in a car this big and this fast.
Engines, 0-60 acceleration and top speed
The BMW M5 is powered by a 4.4-litre V6 engine that features twin turbos and backs up its 592bhp with a mighty 750Nm of torque. With the help of its rapid-fire eight-speed automatic gearbox and four-wheel drive traction the M5 screams to 62mph in the mind-blowingly quick time of 3.4 seconds. Top speed is 155mph, but choose the M Driver package and BMW will override the engine limiter giving you a top speed of 190mph. Selecting the Competition pack barely affects performance, but it does shave a tenth of the 0-62mph time – down to 3.3 seconds.
While it’s an all-new car, most of the mechanical kit in the M5 has been developed from existing technology – that includes the engine which is an upgraded version of the previous M5 power unit, while BMW has also gained lots of experience with xDrive 4x4 tech in various models. The standard 5 Series performed well in our 2018 Driver Power Survey, ranking a creditable 21st out of all the cars included.
Safety is taken very seriously too, with the standard 5 Series scoring highly for adult and child occupants on the way to a 5-star Euro NCAP crash rating. The standard autonomous braking system was commended, and the M5 also comes fitted with the BMW Driving Assistant that’s optional on other models. This gives you lane departure warning, rear cross traffic alert and traffic sign recognition, on top of the adaptive cruise control.
With the added security of four-wheel drive traction, a rigidly engineered structure and an array of safety tech, there’s never been a safer BMW M5.
Warranty
The M5 gets BMW’s standard three-year unlimited mileage warranty, that naturally includes breakdown cover.
Servicing
BMW offers its Service Inclusive package on the M5, taking care of all servicing costs for the first 36,000 miles, but your dealer is likely to charge around £1,000 for the privilege. The servicing schedule itself depends on mileage and how you use the car, but annual inspections are recommended even for low mileage cars.
The 5 Series is bigger all round than its predecessor, and this translates into more room for passengers and a small increase in boot volume. As you would expect from a sizable executive model there’s plenty of space to keep things in the cabin, with decently sized glovebox, door pockets and cubby in the centre console. There’s also somewhere to put your phone while it charges wirelessly.
The multi-adjustable seats and steering wheel make it easy to find the perfect position, and the sporty bolstering makes them exceptionally comfortable – you can sit low, too, which suits the M5’s sporty character.
Size
The M5 is 4,966mm long, 2,126mm wide and 1,473mm tall which makes it a pretty big machine. BMW has only stretched the 5 Series body shell by 36mm for this generation, however, so in terms of size it doesn’t feel any different to the last version from the driver’s seat.
Leg room, head room & passenger space
Wide-opening doors reveal a very spacious 5 Series interior, with that extra body length put to good use for rear seat passengers, who have plenty of space to lounge and lots of headroom too. There’s easily room for three-abreast in the back, but unfortunately the transmission tunnel eats up foot room for the middle passenger making life just a little awkward. There are no such issues for the two up front, where the accommodation feels extremely generous.
Boot
Now 10 litres bigger than before, the 5 Series boot can swallow a decent 530 litres of your luggage. That makes it just about as big as the Mercedes E-Class or Jaguar XF, and the BMW also has a wide boot opening plus the versatility of split/fold rear seats.
The M5 also has a decent towing capacity of 2,000kgs for a braked trailer, but we can’t see many people wanting to use the car that way.
The M5 price-tag is almost as eye-watering as its performance. It costs almost £90k in standard form, or £96k for the Competition, and it will be easy to tumble over the £100k mark with a handful of options ticked on your order form. That will have implications for anyone running an M5 as a company perk car, as the Benefit-in-Kind rating is predictably high at 37 per cent. That’s down to the C02 emissions of 241g/km for the standard M5 or 246g/km for the Competition version.
Although the M5’s V8 is relatively compact at 4.4-litres, it’s not especially efficient. You can get 26.9mpg out of the standard car, or 26.1mpg out of the Competition – but clearly any temptation to access the available performance will skewer you at the petrol pumps.
Road tax is going to be hefty at £450 per year for the first six years, thanks to the £310 luxury car surcharge.
Using the performance will also accelerate wear of consumable items like tyres and brakes, which for a car as exotic as the BMW M5 will be costly items.
Insurance groups
Your BMW M5 insurance isn’t going to be cheap either, as the model’s high price and vast performance make the model a shoe-in for the most expensive Group 50 insurance rating.
Depreciation
Used prices for German super saloons are often a talking point on enthusiast forums. They inevitably look tempting value as they drop in price like a stone the moment the original owner drives out of the showroom. You can expect to lose around 50 per cent of your purchase price if you keep an M5 for three years.
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