BMW M5 Saloon and Touring review

From £111,405

Flagship 5 Series has turned PHEV and promises to be BMW's most extreme super-saloon yet

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Certain cars just define a genre. It’s the Golf for hatchbacks, the MX-5 for roadsters and probably the BMW M5 for super-saloons.

But where a current-gen Mazda MX-5 is still a fundamentally similar car to a Mk1 from 1989, the M5 has always been a shape-shifter. At the launch for the new G90 M5, BMW put on a spread of historic M5s for us to drive. Aside from a dozen browser tabs of E34 M5 classified ads, the first thing I took away is that the new M5 is a very, very different car from a 1985 E28. Next to the compact, understated, manually shifted and deliciously slippy original, the latest fast Five might as well have come from a different galaxy.

That’s not the salient point, however. More pertinent is that the M5 has always been a technical showcase, and back in 1985 that meant putting a race-derived straight six into an unassuming sports saloon; for the E60 M5 in 2005 it meant a 9000rpm V10, a single-clutch automated manual gearbox and a novel user interface concept; for the F10 M5 in 2012 it meant abandoning 28 years of naturally aspirated engines and embracing turbochargers; in 2018 it meant using four-wheel drive for entertainment rather than stability and understeer. For the F90 M5 in 2024 it means going all-in on plug-in hybrid powertrain technology.

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DESIGN & STYLING

BMW M5 2024 review front static 057

The headline stuff is that the M5 now weighs 2435kg before you climb aboard. That figure rises to two and a half tonnes if you choose the Touring (for only the third time in the M5’s history, an estate is now an option). Either way, it’s enough to give even 717bhp something to think about. Indeed, the new M5 is slightly slower to 62mph than the previous-gen car (3.5sec versus 3.4). Does that matter? To some it will, but the super-saloon arms race needs to end somewhere, and this seems as good a point as any.

What matters to M is not only the pure performance but also the experience, and to that end, the M5 retains the 4.4-litre V8 with two twin-scroll turbos from the previous generation, albeit with a range of detail improvements. It now makes 577bhp all by itself.

BMW was clearly keen to showcase the possibilities of its Individual programme with these launch cars. The standard colour selection is typically quite limited, but for the right price, BMW will happily supply your M5 in Speed Yellow or Daytona Violet, like the car in the photos. It was a signature colour of the E34 M5 and E36 M3.
Illya Verpraet
Road Tester

The hybrid part – the 18.6kWh battery and 194bhp electric motor – is actually the same as you’ll find in the fleet-favourite BMW 530e. R&D chief Dirk Häcker says bespoke high-performance batteries are in the works for future models, but for now this is the best solution. There was no temptation to go with a smaller AMG-style battery, because all 5 Series share the same body and structure, which has a compartment under the floor for the battery. As such, using a smaller unit would just be a waste of space.

Anyway, the low centre of gravity that comes with having a battery pack in the floor has allowed M to back off the suspension stiffness a touch compared with the previous-generation M5 Competition. It still doesn’t believe in air suspension, but the M5’s steel coils are now progressive, giving the adaptive dampers (which are now made by Bilstein instead of long-time partner Sachs) more room to work. The M5 naturally gets plenty of bespoke hardware and geometry that you wouldn’t find in a normal 5 Series.

M’s disinterest in air springs does not mean it has made some sort of back-to-basics M5; far from it. Instead, Garching has thrown the full gamut of chassis tech at the G90. There’s variable-ratio steering and four-wheel steering (the rear wheels can turn up to 1.5deg), the traction and stability control systems are even more advanced than before and the fully variable four-wheel drive that can switch to rear-wheel drive makes a return. Data shows that vanishingly few owners ever use it, but it’s the usual principle of the diver’s watch: what matters is not whether owners use it, but rather the knowledge that the capability is there.

This new M5 certainly isn’t back to basics in how it looks. The current 5 Series is a slightly awkward-looking thing, with a tall scuttle and belt line to hide the thick battery pack under the floor, a droopy bottom and rather fussy detailing. But underestimate an injection of M-steroids at your peril. M design is all about stance, and to that end, the new M5 has 75mm wider front wings and, for the first time in an M5, wider rear wings (by 48mm). They house double-staggered (20in at the front, 21in at the back) wheels.

For only the third time in the M5's history (previously with the E34 and the E60/E61), it is now also available as a 'Touring' estate. For only £2000 more than the saloon, you can get a car that’s just as quick in the real world (you won’t miss the 0.1sec the Touring gives up in the 0-62mph sprint) but gains a good dose of practicality. The boot is bigger in volume (500 litres versus 466) and access is much improved through the big hatch.

This generation of 5 Series Touring no longer has the unique separately opening rear window, which still seems like a big miss to us. But unlike in some Mercedes plug-in hybrids, the boot floor has no humps in it and the rear seats neatly fold flat.

Also, to these eyes (you’re very welcome to disagree, of course), the Touring looks much more harmonious than the saloon, with its droopy bootlid.

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INTERIOR

BMW M5 2024 review dash 063

Get in and you’re treated to a classically pedigree driving position and typically outstanding sports seats. You can't sit quite as touring-car low as in the previous M5, because you are sitting on top of the battery pack, but you're not exactly perched. And anyway, the ultra-low seating position you get in BMWs is quite a recent thing – the E60 5 Series was more upright.

Most of the surroundings are the same as that of any new 5 Series, though. That is to say not as high-quality or measured, let alone easy to use, as the previous generation. Although the big curved screen isn't short visual pizzazz, much of the remaining switchgear has clearly been downgraded.

For years, BMW resisted the trend for flat-bottom steering wheels, but it has finally caved. Thankfully, it's still mostly round, and it retains the usual red M1 and M2 buttons that let you quickly dial up your favourite setting configurations.
Illya Verpraet
Road Tester

M division must agree that some settings shouldn't require a menu trawl, because the centre console has gained a couple more buttons that give you direct access to the driving-mode configuration, the hybrid modes, the M modes and the stability control.

The new 5 Series, whether M5 or 520i, is also surprisingly tight in the back for leg room, and while the boot floor isn't as high as in plug-in hybrid Mercedes models, the luggage space is weirdly narrow.

ENGINES & PERFORMANCE

BMW M5 2024 review front tracking 036

For the first time in an M5, pressing the start button elicits not an engine firing up but a friendly bong to tell you the drive system is ready. When you put it in Drive and squeeze the accelerator, the car moves off on electric power because that’s the default setting. The ability to glide noiselessly through town and complete uninteresting journeys on electric power is certainly an asset, but part of the appeal of a car with a special engine is to make those journeys a bit more interesting. There is something odd about having a super-saloon that feels a bit wheezy until the engine kicks in.

It’s solved easily by changing into the Dynamic hybrid mode, which keeps the engine on all the time and makes sure the battery never runs out, but then you start to wonder why you’re carting 150kg of battery around.

When you’re in electric mode, the sound system pipes in a noise that’s reminiscent of a V8 but isn’t exactly fake V8 noise. I should hate it, and you can probably turn it off somewhere in the myriad settings, but because it’s quite subtle and not trying to exactly imitate an engine, I left it on.
Illya Verpraet
Road Tester

Configured as such, it becomes plain exactly what the electrification is contributing: it’s not so much standing starts as it is unreal mid-range punch: any gear, any revs, any speed and this M5 goes. This gives you options: you can leave the gearbox in fifth and surf on a burbling wave of torque, or gear down and rev the engine to 7200rpm, letting it do its best E92 M3 V8 impression in the process. It doesn’t matter much for cross-country pace, so you can explore the engine’s different characters. I’m sure some of the sound is digitally augmented, but not obviously so: it sounded good to me.

It is the sort of performance that feels great on an autobahn, but it might feel a bit like setting up a Marshall stack in your living room when introduced to the UK’s more pedestrian speed limits. This M5 reaches high speeds with ridiculous ease and feels rock-solid doing so.

RIDE & HANDLING

BMW M5 2024 review rear corner 024

It’s surprisingly comfortable, too. The suspension is firm, sure, but really well damped, not harsh and supremely controlled, to the point where I tended to leave the dampers in their stiffest mode. When road test ed Matt Saunders drove a Touring prototype in the UK, he found it coped well with bumpy Welsh roads, too, so the M5s new-found compliance ought to translate.

Which isn’t to say the M5 has become a laid-back cruiser: all that chassis tech gives it plenty of tools to entertain, up to a point. To no-one’s surprise, the adaptive suspension ensures tight body control, while the 285- and 295-section tyres generate enormous grip.

Select 4WD Sport and the halfway-house M Dynamic stability control modes, and all the systems work together to rotate the M5 neatly out of turns and inject an accessible and non-perilous sense of humour into what could be a very serious car. On a good road you can get into a nice flow, and the 2.5 tonnes melt away. Almost.

Push beyond that, though, and it can start to feel a little like uncharted territory. The steering doesn’t give much feedback, and I never felt sure whether I was going to get brutal traction, a gentle slide or a spike of oversteer. That’s probably when driving harder than most owners will tend to do, and I’m sure that on a track, in two-wheel drive mode, the M5 will still make a wonderful smoke machine.

It was whispered during the launch that the Touring’s suspension is set up to be slightly more compliant than the saloon’s, but I drove the saloon one day and the Touring the next and couldn’t tell the difference. That's a good thing, and wouldn't be the case with an equivalent (but taller) SUV.

BMW M5 news

Wagons rule: V10 BMW M5 Touring meets AMG E63 and Audi RS4
Wagons rule: V10 BMW M5 Touring meets AMG E63 and Audi RS4
BMW M5 Touring: 717bhp super-estate to be unveiled on 15 August
BMW M5 Touring: 717bhp super-estate to be unveiled on 15 August

It’s worth noting that the M5 is the only 5 Series Touring variant to do without self-levelling rear suspension, so you might want to consider some deterioration in the handling when you decide to take the family, the dog and the caravan (it’s rated to tow 2000kg) on a track day.

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MPG & RUNNING COSTS

01 BMW M5 Touring 2024 review front driving

The M5 saloon starts from £111,405 and the M5 Touring estate costs £2000 more. That's pricier than the Mercedes-AMG E53 (which isn't quite a full-fat AMG) but far cheaper than the Porsche Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid or AMG GT 63 S E Performance 4-Door Coupé.

In electric mode, the M5 squeezes up to 42 miles out of its 18.6kWh battery, which is quite a bit less than the 530e (which uses the same battery) on account of the wider, stickier tyres. Still, that means it falls into the 8% BIK tax bracket, inconceivably making this 717bhp V8 super-saloon quite an appealing company car for a few high-earning executives.

Fuel economy, as will all PHEVs, will be entirely dependent on how much pure-electric driving you do. Get the electric and petrol motors working hard in tandem, though, and economy won't be any better than in the old M5.

VERDICT

BMW M5 2024 review front static 047

The M5 is a car that needs to be understood in context, then. And if you’re hoping this new one will serve up remotely similar sensations to the E28 M5, forget it: the Toyota GR86 is closer. What it does is reinterpret the super-saloon for 2024.

The PHEV drivetrain means that it can continue to be sold around the world while also giving it a usability boost and electric (literally) throttle response. Meanwhile, the chassis tech manages to disguise the weight pretty well and even add to the dynamic character.

There's still room to fine-tune some of these devillishly complicated systems, but on the evidence of this drive, the G90 is still a proper M5.

Illya Verpraet

Illya Verpraet Road Tester Autocar
Title: Road Tester

As part of Autocar’s road test team, Illya drives everything from superminis to supercars, and writes reviews, comparison tests, as well as the odd feature and news story. 

Much of his time is spent wrangling the data logger and wielding the tape measure to gather the data for Autocar’s eight-page road tests, which are the most rigorous in the business thanks to independent performance, fuel consumption and noise figures.

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