M5 Touring confirmed for US as testing ramps up
New vid shows hybrid M5 facing off against the Arctic Circle as BMW makes North American launch official
Are we excited about the forthcoming M5 Touring? Does the Pope wear a funny hat? Even allowing for BMW’s current penchant for shooting itself in the design foot, the prospect of an M-branded wagon is never one to be taken lightly. Unlike the M3, the 5 Series has been here before (albeit sporadically) and the results have been memorable to say the least. And with BMW finally confirming this week that the G99 will go on sale in North America - in stark contrast to the M3 Touring - it seems safe to assume that the manufacturer is throwing the kitchen sink at the new model.
To underline this fact, it has released a video of the M5 en route to the Arjeplog for winter testing. This is standard procedure for any incoming derivative, of course - but BMW well understands the M-obsessed fraternity (remember the tortuous build-up to the M3’s unveiling?) and even a five-minute video of the car in a multi-storey is likely to glean significant YT clicks. As it happens, Episode 1, covering the motorway journey to Sweden’s far north, is not much more exciting. But we watched it all and we bet you will too.
As you might expect, BMW M’s engineers (once again roped into presenting duties) confirm only what we know for sure: that the near-to-completion new M5 is a plug-in hybrid, with its electric motor incorporated into the transmission. But the brand has been much less coy elsewhere, reiterating in the US release that the ‘M Hybrid drivetrain [is] closely related to the one found in the BMW M Hybrid V8 GTP race car.’ This is another way of saying that it will get a modified version of the petrol-electric powertrain that debuted in the XM. Quite where the M5’s combined power output - or the split between the 4.4-litre V8 and compact motor - will end up is anyone’s guess. But you can bet your mortgage on it being north of 700hp.
We know this because the XM Red Label gets 748hp. BMW has already let slip that the M5’s electric range will be slightly smaller than the SUV, partly because it’s said to feature a slightly smaller battery. On the basis that it’s the only new 5 Series to get an eight-cylinder engine, we’re fervently hoping that more power has been extracted from the S68 unit for its job of powering the flagship - which will be larger and (inevitably) heavier than its predecessor - but that’s just us crossing our fingers and looking at the sky. For now, under its familiar layer of camouflage, all we can do is all agree that the M5 Touring looks like a beast. Let’s hope it turns out to be a handsome and worthy one.
k ugly grill on the front.
I don't know why I find this unexciting, at least not in the way that super saloons were in the past.
Possibly it's to do with the competition; an M5 used to be the better part of 40% more powerful than any other 5-Series, and that was meaningful when a 540i only had 280hp. And that was in an era when hot hatches were creeping up from 150hp to 230hp, so a 400hp saloon was hot stuff, only supercars were much faster.
Now you can buy a Hyundai massive-hatchback-MPV-thing with 640hp or a Tesla with 1050hp - why would I (much as I like an estate) be wowed by 700hp 5-Series?
I don't know why I find this unexciting, at least not in the way that super saloons were in the past.
Possibly it's to do with the competition; an M5 used to be the better part of 40% more powerful than any other 5-Series, and that was meaningful when a 540i only had 280hp. And that was in an era when hot hatches were creeping up from 150hp to 230hp, so a 400hp saloon was hot stuff, only supercars were much faster.
Now you can buy a Hyundai massive-hatchback-MPV-thing with 640hp or a Tesla with 1050hp - why would I (much as I like an estate) be wowed by 700hp 5-Series?
TX.
I don't know why I find this unexciting, at least not in the way that super saloons were in the past.
Possibly it's to do with the competition; an M5 used to be the better part of 40% more powerful than any other 5-Series, and that was meaningful when a 540i only had 280hp. And that was in an era when hot hatches were creeping up from 150hp to 230hp, so a 400hp saloon was hot stuff, only supercars were much faster.
Now you can buy a Hyundai massive-hatchback-MPV-thing with 640hp or a Tesla with 1050hp - why would I (much as I like an estate) be wowed by 700hp 5-Series?
I have been told by an Alpina representative that BMW plan to make Alpina a Maybach competitor using the 7 series as a basis.
But that's a matter of degree; we're ultimately talking about a 2m wide, 2.5t machine - it's never going to be an involving or tactile thing.
Super saloons used to be rareified machines, superior to the crowd by a variety of measures and by a margin - but that superiority has been significantly degraded.
But that's a matter of degree; we're ultimately talking about a 2m wide, 2.5t machine - it's never going to be an involving or tactile thing.
Super saloons used to be rareified machines, superior to the crowd by a variety of measures and by a margin - but that superiority has been significantly degraded.
If the idea was for it to not be noticed, they aren’t succeeding too well.
Or....
So German U-Boats have trouble working out speed and direction before firing a torpedo.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff