BMW M5 xdrive M Steptronic
M5 + AWD = an über saloon with broad appeal
WHO drives an M5? It was the counter question with which the gathered engineers, project managers and PRS at the M5’s international launch addressed our enquiries as to the logic behind BMW’S decision to go AWD with its halo performance sedan. And it’s a valid point. Who among M5 buyers has the wherewithal to safely extract every ounce of performance from their cars? It’s likely a narrow slice of that particular demographic and leaves the larger section with neither immense skill, nor a death wish, wondering just what their cars are capable of.
It’s with this observation in mind that BMW has gone the AWD route. On paper, it’s a decision that could dilute the M5’s red-in-tooth-and-claw appeal, but in practice it’s something altogether different. The M5’s 4,4-litre powerplant has been left largely untouched, barring tweaks to such elements as the management systems, fuel injection, turbochargers and the like that bump the outputs from the previous car’s 412 kw and 680 N.m to a lustier 441 kw and 750 N.m of twist. Those are enough to propel the car from top Slightly flared wheelarches, sporty footwear and a smattering of M bits make the new M5 a study in subtlety. opposite The M5’s performance AWD system features a trio of configurations and even makes allowance for some controlled drift in its middle setting. 0-100 km/h in 3,4 seconds and a 305 km/h top speed. Those of you paging through CAR Guide at the back of this magazine may note these figures are as close to dammit to those of the rival Mercedes-amg E63 S.
The everyday driving experience is a different story, however. Where the Affalterbach car is surprisingly stiff and unyielding on anything other than billiard table-smooth tarmac, the M5 rode the patchwork of Portuguese road surfaces on our launch route in a palpably more composed and cosseting manner. In fact, the M5 can feel rather demure. There’s little other than a subdued V8 burble permeating the cabin and, barring the fat-rimmed steering wheel and form-fitting seats, you could just as well be ensconced in any of the less powerful 5 Series models. It’s only when you switch the drive selector to a sportier setting, open the flaps on the sports exhaust system, and roll down the windows that you become aware of this car’s pedigree as a chorus of blusters, cracks and growls from the tail ricochet from your surroundings.
Despite features such as a carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic
roof, the new car is only 15 kg lighter than its predecessor. Yet it exhibits a more balanced stance that makes it feel nimbler than the older model. There’s a considerable amount of configurability on offer here, with the steering, damping, transmission and drivetrain each receiving three settings. The intelligent AWD system also boasts a trio of configurations (AWD, sports AWD and RWD) and utilises a central transfer case with a multiplate clutch that can apportion torque fully between the axles. It’s further augmented by an active rear differential with a 0-100% locking spread. Consequently, crafting a combination that best suits your driving style requires some experimentation. Once you’ve found a setup that works for you, however, the M5 feels satisfyingly wieldy. With the AWD module in its middle setting, there’s even enough play in the stability control to allow for some mid-corner tailwagging. Engage RWD and you’ll realise that a steady hand and a big helping of intestinal fortitude is required to keep all that power out of the ditch. The steering isn’t pin sharp, but in a large executive sedan that has to cruise as capably as it sprints, it proves feelsome enough, sitting neatly between execu-barge light and sportscar responsive.
The suspension, although more forgiving than that of the AMG, is a little softer than expected. Still, it’s not stodgy and it doesn’t take long to get into the rhythm of how the body settles into tighter sections of road. Some may argue that the adoption of AWD has eroded some of the old M5 generations’ liveliness, but the engineers have done a sterling job of configuring it in such a way that, in most driving scenarios, you’d be hardpressed to tell if the front wheels are chiming into proceedings.
It’s on the track, though, where the sparkle behind the M5’s added drive really comes to the fore. Speaking at Estoril Autodrome with M5 project manager, Axel Schramm, he explained that the biggest challenge in developing the new M5 lay with striking a precise balance between AWD traction and the tail-end playfulness for which past M5s were renowned. “The working between the M xdrive system and the various stability aids was a lengthy process of trial and error,” said Schramm. “With the combination of the M5’s power and AWD traction, it’s easy to have the stability-assistance systems intervene either too abruptly or too late, at which point the driver may not have the time, space or
skill to catch the car should the tail break loose.”
Schramm went on to explain that, finding a synergy between AWD and the suite of driver aids helps make the M5’s driving experience a smoother, more communicative affair; playful when you want it to be, but more progressive and forgiving when you breach the limits of traction and talent. It’s all too easy to acknowledge Schramm’s rationale as being flavoured with a hint of paternal bias; the M5 is, in his own words, “his baby”.
The words “fun” and “forgiving” were vying with one another for first place when I slid behind the wheel and tried my damnedest to keep pace with the works driver who’d been ripping around the track at an astonishing rate. Estoril is a bizarre circuit that flits with alacrity from fast and flowing to tight and technical, lending it perfectly to RWD cars that can skim through corners courtesy of traction and throttle control. That makes it an environment where a heavy, horsepower-laden AWD car will be understeering and smoking its brakes in no time at all. Our first couple of laps were undertaken with the red steering wheel-mounted M1 button preconfigured to the standard AWD setup. There’s plenty of grip on offer in this configuration, but you can feel the rear sports differential helping to tuck the nose into tighter corners, effectively nixing the nose-heavy understeer that often afflicts larger AWD performance cars. The M2 button was configured to the more playful sport AWD setting. With the stability control dialled down, it’s the sweet spot in the myriad settings, still providing plentiful grip but allowing just enough slack in the leash for you to drift the tail with relative ease. And it’s in the latter respect that the new car contrasts so strongly with its forebear. The F10’s propensity to go from stable to sideways with little warning meant that a skilled hand and steady nerves were required to extract the best from it. The new car is a different creature. The prodigious grip inspires confidence, but it’s tempered with AWD that ably mimics a RWD setup. It’s more progressive and communicative than the old car, with the transition between grip and slip being telegraphed clearly and timeously.
Ultimately, the new M5 gently goads you to push that little bit harder, safe in the knowledge that it’s always ready to catch you should your talent run out. It’s a blend of talents that makes the M5 a formidable addition to the super-sedan fold. E63 AMG S, you have been warned…