All the car you’ll need?
Ignore the funny paint job: this is the first test of the brilliant new BMW M5
THE AUTOMOTIVE WORLD is changing apace. Purists seek solace in classics from turbocharged this and low-emissions that, and it appears BMW has given us another reason to do so by revealing that its sixth-generation M5 will feature four-wheel drive. Heresy? Well, its biggest adversary, the (now four-wheel-drive) Mercedes-AMG E63, hasn’t lost any of its desirability and hooligan tendencies.
BMW hasn’t disclosed the output of the M5’s updated 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, but ‘about 600bhp’ is being whispered. That doesn’t sound like a massive step up from the previous model, but a) no sane person ever called that car underpowered, and b) the new M5 is lighter than before, despite the added hardware. That’s thanks in a tiny part to a carbonfibre roof, but more to do with the new, lighter platform. How much lighter BMW M won’t yet tell us, but we’re expecting less than 100kg. Worth having, but hardly an explanation for the improvement in the 0-62mph time: the new M5 takes ‘less than 3.5 seconds’. Let that sink in and remember that this is still a large luxury saloon that’ll transport five across Europe in comfort.
This performance has been made possible by the xDrive four-wheel-drive system, but few BMW M buyers choose their cars based purely on straight-line speed and lap times. W ho cares if the new M5 is quicker against the clock and around the Nürburgring if it’s no more engaging to drive than a 520d M Sport? So BMW M has developed its own take on the xDrive system, and a day trying it out on wet and dry circuits revealed that it’s rather special. Anyone can jump in and drive the M5 quickly in its default mode with the DSC stability control on. It feels rear-wheel-drive until the computers reckon the front axle can help out. But several other options are open to the keener driver. Press the DSC button quickly to activate the M Dynamic Mode and 4WD Sport is automatically selected too, sending more power to the rear more of the time. In this guise the M5 is exceptionally fast and smooth while still allowing the driver more control over slip angles.
But to experience the M5 at its best you need to turn off the DSC. This unlocks three settings: 4WD, 4WD Sport and, glory be, 2WD. That’s right: unfettered rear-wheel drive. There’s a clear difference between the two 4WD settings, with full-on power slides possible, even in the dry, in 4WD Sport (less so in 4WD, which is more neutral). And there’s no fear in using the 2WD setting either, even on wet surfaces, as the new M5 communicates its limits of adhesion in a far clearer manner than its predecessor, easing into slip rather than snapping. A quicker steering rack (now electric) makes it easy to modulate the lock, while the eight-speed auto (no longer a jerky dual-clutch affair) smoothly, rapidly shifts gears through three levels of speed and severity.
First impressions suggest that BMW M has done it again, creating an M5 that can play dual roles even better than before – it uses its fourwheel drive to enhance the driving experience rather than take from it. The more things change, the more they stay the same.