RE: BMW M5 (F90): Driven

RE: BMW M5 (F90): Driven

Author
Discussion

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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popeyewhite said:
E65Ross said:
popeyewhite said:
peteA said:
The M5 isn’t like this - it’s meant to be a thinking mans super saloon,
Isn't it meant to be a sports car in a saloon body? For the businessman that also liked the odd spirited drive? That was the original design brief IIRC. Anyway fake noise, too many gadgets and unattractive design ruin the package...but a very powerful engine in any car is always good.
No, it's not a sports car in a saloon body, and it never has been.
Sure I'd seen it described as such somewhere obvs not....perhaps you'd be happier with 'sports saloon created in response to MB's 190 2.3 16v'... for the businessman that also liked the odd spirited drive?
That was the M3. And both were built for homologation purposes to go racing.

The M5 has always been take a normal saloon and stick the engine from a supercar in it. (M1 originally)

givablondabone

5,513 posts

156 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Now now let's not trip up over ourselves here. Just because I suggested 600bhp 'might' be too much for a road car certainly doesn't mean I'm not glad these things exist. All I was saying was if electronics are necessary to keep everything in check and keep us herberts safe from ourselves then it does at least warrant the question how much is too much surely? I have a 60 mile round trip commute on largely A roads and get frustrated with around 320bhp at times. Get on a twisty B road and I'm happy to admit the car is faster than me.

And I think we all need to be a bit more honest with ourselves too. Start tapping into the performance of a 600bhp car on the public road and I think you'd most probably be stretching a lot of people's' idea of social responsibility.

Just my view. Not looking to fight about it.

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
givablondabone said:
Now now let's not trip up over ourselves here. Just because I suggested 600bhp 'might' be too much for a road car certainly doesn't mean I'm not glad these things exist. All I was saying was if electronics are necessary to keep everything in check and keep us herberts safe from ourselves then it does at least warrant the question how much is too much surely? I have a 60 mile round trip commute on largely A roads and get frustrated with around 320bhp at times. Get on a twisty B road and I'm happy to admit the car is faster than me.

And I think we all need to be a bit more honest with ourselves too. Start tapping into the performance of a 600bhp car on the public road and I think you'd most probably be stretching a lot of people's' idea of social responsibility.

Just my view. Not looking to fight about it.
No - act anti-socially with 600bhp (or 200bhp) and you will be stretching just about anyone idea of social responsibility.

Act with sense with 600bhp, and you will be fine. Comfortably fine.


givablondabone

5,513 posts

156 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Ares said:
No - act anti-socially with 600bhp (or 200bhp) and you will be stretching just about anyone idea of social responsibility.

Act with sense with 600bhp, and you will be fine. Comfortably fine.
Agreed you can be a c*ck in anything but to do 600bhp any kind of justice.............?

Patrick Bateman

12,200 posts

175 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Has no-one commented on how similar they are now?

Thinking back to previous AMG, M and Audi RS iterations, look at the variation that was on offer. V10's, V8's, supercharged, turbocharged, 4WD, RWD etc.

What have we got now? All 4WD, all turbocharged V8's, all slushboxes.

Now they're obviously terrific cars, but that's a crying shame.

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
givablondabone said:
Ares said:
No - act anti-socially with 600bhp (or 200bhp) and you will be stretching just about anyone idea of social responsibility.

Act with sense with 600bhp, and you will be fine. Comfortably fine.
Agreed you can be a c*ck in anything but to do 600bhp any kind of justice.............?
I don't have 600hp.
But I do have 510hp (and c300kg less weight than the M5). I frequently do all 510hp justice on the road. That's not to say I wouldn't like to give it more justice wink

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Patrick Bateman said:
Has no-one commented on how similar they are now?

Thinking back to previous AMG, M and Audi RS iterations, look at the variation that was on offer. V10's, V8's, supercharged, turbocharged, 4WD, RWD etc.

What have we got now? All 4WD, all turbocharged V8's, all slushboxes.

Now they're obviously terrific cars, but that's a crying shame.
Aside from the argument that they were all potentially different for the sake of being different....they are still very different cars once you drive them.

popeyewhite

20,023 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Ares said:
That was the M3. And both were built for homologation purposes to go racing.
No, the first true M5 - the M535, came before any 3 series version. And they were built because MB had the 190 2.3 16v, were racing it, and BMW "had nothing to respond with". BMW had no sports version of the 5 series at this time so decided to build one, hence the M535 in 1984. It's all on the M Division website.

Wills2

22,979 posts

176 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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Just watched the Matt Prior Autocar video and he seems to really like it, sounded good as well, looked good and goes like the clappers, can't see what the issue is.

The problem with my old M5 was it had too much power/torque in the lower gears for the available traction to be able to exploit it fully although it was very benign in that it wasn't snappy, you could spin up the rears in 2nd really easily which is fun but not if you're going for an overtake and misjudge the throttle application as I did a few times.




Mr Whippy

29,085 posts

242 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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Even if the engine is a peach you won't be able to give it a WOT for longer than a few seconds, ever.

After about 200bhp/tonne, on normal fun roads, it's all about the way it drives and feels than anything else.
You can add more go but it won't make it more "M"

I'd rather see the M3 engine in there and use e-turbo assists for zero lag, or regen and batteries for awd and torque in-fill ala P1.
Get the weight down and make it genuinely interesting tech and respond like an NA motor.

Instead it's a cheap solution priced as if it were special.
In a world of fancy solutions this is really bland.

JD2329

482 posts

169 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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In theory I should want one of these, but it seems rather...unnecessary somehow.
Seems a lot of complexity to achieve the unattainable.

HuggyBearFezzy

63 posts

183 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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I think it's fantastic and would love to drive one/own one...which going by experience will be in about another 15 years.

lord trumpton

7,434 posts

127 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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I love the looks and the romance of owning such a fast barge but in reality a car of this size and performance makes little sense in the UK

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
popeyewhite said:
Ares said:
That was the M3. And both were built for homologation purposes to go racing.
No, the first true M5 - the M535, came before any 3 series version. And they were built because MB had the 190 2.3 16v, were racing it, and BMW "had nothing to respond with". BMW had no sports version of the 5 series at this time so decided to build one, hence the M535 in 1984. It's all on the M Division website.
The M5 was first launched in 1986 and created by dropping the M1 engine into the 5-series (535i) shell.
The E30 M3 was the same year.

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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anonymous said:
[redacted]
Hence the benchmark part of the question rolleyes


Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]
So what current car is more joyful/more engaging than the M3/M4, in your opinion?


And you appear to be mixing fact with opinion wink

Ares

11,000 posts

121 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
lord trumpton said:
I love the looks and the romance of owning such a fast barge but in reality a car of this size and performance makes little sense in the UK
Why?

wildheb

8 posts

153 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
I'm not sure how he can state the interior is 'understated' - I went to a dealer launch a few weeks back and the interior looks like a mix between a boyed up Max Power special and a night club/Xmas tree at night.

It has a £3 red Halfords starter button, light up speakers and head rest badges - wow and even more impressively you can programme the colour of all the Xmas tree/nightclub lights!!!

Having owned a F10 M5 for 3 years I feel I am in a position to comment. That car had an interior that was a lot more understated and classier than this.

Perhaps I'm just getting old but the E63S I drove in May was not much different. Perhaps BMW and Mercedes should revert to getting mature folk to design interiors for mature buyers as opposed to kids. It's enough to put me off buying one. Nuff said

Willy Nilly

12,511 posts

168 months

Monday 4th December 2017
quotequote all
Ares said:
lord trumpton said:
I love the looks and the romance of owning such a fast barge but in reality a car of this size and performance makes little sense in the UK
Why?
Traffic, driving to the limit point for a start. Even if you put the law aside for a moment, it's hard to give my car any stick at all, never mind one with 6 times more power. I've watched MotoGP where they show throttle position and the bikes are only at WOT for a few second per lap on a track where going fast is actively encouraged. Quite how you unleash 600 horses from a big car for anything more than a second or two is beyond me, but I'd be interested to learn from you.

I would have thought the 530D or 540i would be pretty fast cars on public roads and more than fast enough. I'm not for one second saying someone shouldn't be allowed to buy it, just wondering how you use the performance you paid for.

Selmer Mk6

245 posts

128 months

Monday 4th December 2017
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Limpet said:
I agree with this. I've got the ZF8HP in my M140i, and not once have I ever felt short-changed. Shifts bang through instantly in manual and Sport+, and slur almost imperceptibly in auto and Comfort. Unless you're in Eco Pro mode, the converter is locked at anything above about 15 mph, so you get instant drive, and proper engine braking. And with the TC, you have absolutely smooth, flawlessly consistent creep, and impeccable manners in heavy traffic.

What has been achieved with modern TC transmissions and their sophisticated control systems is remarkable. Their behaviour is barely recognisable compared to even a decade ago.
I owned M240i auto and yes the box is great, better than the DCT around town. However, when punching it in the DCT (in my F80) the ZF is no match. I can live with the around town ride. People are getting soft. Stamp and go, minimal driving skills required.