There are lots of other things to get used to and get your head around, too, in part thanks to a raft of options that include one of my other favourite steering wheel buttons: a heated wheel rim. I do like a heated steering wheel. And, the other day, somebody left a pea under 20 mattresses and 20 feather-beds and I could still feel it at night!
Anyway, that’s part of the Comfort pack, which our road test reckoned was a good idea to spec, unlike the Premium pack. I agree; the M5 has a carbonfibre roof to reduce weight and make it lower, so I’d steer clear of too many options — such as the Premium pack’s soft-close doors — that add the kilos back on again.

Carbon-ceramic brakes also made the list, at £7495, and an M Sports exhaust, at £1100. The brake package is probably what provides a slightly oversensitive pedal at times — we’ll see if that improves with miles — and the ’zorst adds a welcome edge to the turbocharged motor, which otherwise resorts to relatively convincing speaker augmentation for some of its excitement.
Aural excitement, anyway. It relies on deploying 592bhp in great unhurried strides to deliver the visceral excitement. The engine is terrific. Less overtly V8ish than an AMG it may be, but there’s no arguing with the amount of oomph it provides or how it delivers it through the eight-speed automatic 'box.
It’s even capable, if you’re careful, of 28mpg, although 23mpg is more likely and 7.5mpg is possible on a track. I suppose owners don’t take M5s there that often, although they should, because it’s a great way to find out that BMW’s new super-saloon is unsurpassed in its dynamic abilities.
I’m looking forward to exploring those more as we find many, many more jobs for the M5 to do.
Second opinion
I love this car. I struggled at first to see why a 5 Series needed to be so hardcore but, after 400 miles, I just couldn’t get enough of its near-supercar steering and body control, plus its intoxicating acceleration, given the practical package and effortless delivery. Brilliant!
Steve Cropley
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BMW M5 prices and specification
Prices: List price new £87,940 List price now £89,705 Price as tested £101,900 Dealer value now £91,000 Private value now £89,000 Trade value now £87,000 (part exchange)
Options:Premium Package (including soft-close doors, massage seats, ceramic finish for controls) £1995, Comfort Package (including steering wheel heating, seat heating all-round) £1195, M Sports exhaust £1100, carbonfibre engine cover £1025, carbon-ceramic brakes £7495, M seat belts £260, carbonfibre/aluminium-look trim £495, Apple CarPlay £235, online entertainment £160
Join the debate
Sundym
Erm yes
Symanski
Fuel injector failure.
Previous M5 suffered from the fuel injectors failing. They stayed open, filling the cylinder with fuel. Then you had 9 cylinders acting opon one that was full of petrol. End result was blown engines.
Mostly happened as the BMW passed out of warranty. It would leave you with a repair bill in the tens of thousands.
I believe there was also another problem with the gearbox on the M5 where an inexpensive seal would fail, but that seal was so difficult to get to that BMW opted not to do a preventative replacement. It would take out both the gearbox and clutch system.
nomayor
Well
The previous M5 was also v8. So with the "nine cylinders" reference, you must be referring to the one before that, the E60.
Overdrive
M5's rating
After all, no car is perfect. You (the Autocar) hand out 5 stars to various JLRs, McLarens and sporty Fords at the drop of a hat, and none of them are free of minor demerits, are they?
jason_recliner
Overdrive wrote:
The two tonne weight is enough to warrant a demerit IMO.
MarkII
BMW M5 or ALPINA B5?
I know it's a very personal decision, driven more by the heart than the head and in all probability you either want an M5 for what it represents and how it looks OR an Alpina for the same reasons.
The B5 may not give quite the visceral experience of the M5 nor be quite as tight at ten tenths but despite both cars capabilities and massive reserves, how many minutes per year would the difference really be noticeable?
Myself, I'd have the B5 Touring (not an option with the M5) in Alpina Blue with the decals and enjoy the capability of a car that can cover so many bases, whilst also being a far rarer sight on our roads and only on the radar of those in the know.
Interesting that you comment on the fact that neither the M5 nor B5 use runflat tyres (Alpina have avoided fitting them for years). Runflats may be considered safer but they hamper ride and control, especially when pressing on over the broken road surfaces we have in the UK. IMHO they are one of the first things to ditch on any BMW - replace them with a good quality sports tyre and a can of foam in the boot. You don't even need to spend a fortune, non-runflats are cheaper to begin with and aside from the main brands like Michelin/Pirelli, several other manfacturers like Vredestein, Kumho and Yokohama offer really good rubber too. Change from a runflat to any of them and you feel the difference immediately.
Peter Cavellini
You know.....don’t you?
When your paying £100,000 for daily transport your not particularly bothered about running costs but, when the Engine grenades itself or a gearbox goes boom! These get your attention, not because of the cost,but because it shouldn’t happen, you trust the name the product, these you shouldn’t have to foot the Bill for if it’s been serviced as per schedule by an approval BMW Garage then BMW should pick up the bill, how many fail in a year globally?, not going to ruin BMW to replace an Engine, no, if you have confidence in your product it should have a lifetime guarantee assuming you did the above....
Peter Cavellini.
Symanski
Only BMW service.
Mine was serviced religiously at BMW and only BMW. So often was it there that the service manager is on my Facebook friends list!
When it came to replacing parts that are still warrented in the USA because they are known design weaknesses BMW weren't interested. I was left with a car that was unsafe to drive on a motorway, and with bills running in to thousands. It had already been in twice with me paying to replace parts that didn't fix the problem, and the bills getting larger each time but the problem not solved. They wanted me to spend thousands more to fix it.
Never buying another BMW.
JoCoLo
Peter Cavellini wrote:
“When you are paying”or “When you’re paying” , not “When your paying”. I think for someone who posts on every article like a journalist accuracy is important Peter.
Peter Cavellini
Not unusual to be....
This Car had an abused life, first, who the heck loads a Car up with half a ton ( his words, not mine) of old Car Mags?!, why not hire a Van, or borrow your mates estate, no one have a Q8?,plus, if your buying a Car like this you know it’s not going to be a walk in the Park, there’s bound to be something go wrong, it shouldn’t, you’ve payed a lot for it,but, it’s par for the course these days, not many Cars like this at this price don’t have issues.
Peter Cavellini.
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