I was lucky enough to be the first Irish journalist (in the queue!) to try out BMW’s launch control set up in the new 5 litre V10 ‘M5’ and my face has only just regained its shape from the G Force!
On a German Air Force base outside Munich I had 2.5 Kilometres of runway to play with. With a press of a couple of buttons I held the SMG (sequential manual gearbox) lever forward and floored the accelerator.
The massive 10 cylinder engine revved up to a pre-set level and the moment I release the lever the 5 litre slung forward with tyres screeching for mercy. The car rapidly gained speed as the tyres chirped through the automated gearshift that launch control demands. Even on a dry surface the rear wheels wanted to spin in third but M5’s brain was keeping things in check.
The M5 is a clever car with no end of electronics to keep you safe, in fact the car’s ECU (electronic control unit) or ‘brain’ can do 200 million calculations per second! 62 km/h arrives in 4.7 seconds, past 160 km/h (100 mph) in third gear before the average car would hit 50 km/h!
I began to search the horizon for the 300 metre marker boards where I was told to brake as the car accelerated ever closer to the pre-set limiter. The M5 ‘heads up’ display on the windscreen was set to display the ‘Rev’ counter, gear and speed. At 270 km/h (that’s 167 mph in old money) the limiter kicked in with lot’s of runway to spare (before you ask the M5 can do 205 mph when de-restricted).
In the distance I scanned the braking markers and hit the anchors a bit sooner than necessary. I have never approached the end of a runway without being airborne! The M5’s massive brakes made a huge impression as they killed the speed off in about a hundred and fifty metres. Next to the handling circuit to fling the saloon about the place as surly it must be useless with such straight-line performance?
But no the big car handles predictably and is nimble through the twisty bits. I selected ‘M Drive’ from the menu of electronic aids and enjoyed the slightly less assisted dynamic experience. I kept this setting for the rest of the day on the roads around Bavaria.
On German Autobahn it is common to travel legally at 150 mph. Frequently in the past I have found myself moving in to let Porsche 911s past but in the M5 it was the other way around. The M5 is simply awesome and incredibly easy to drive. Through the picturesque towns and villages the car with the M button off drives like a 2-litre and in no way is a mad animal straining at the leash.
Apart from the huge thirst, which was the best money I never spent, there is no downside to the M5. It is a Rollercoaster ride on the flat that can seat five in comfort and take 500 litres of luggage in the well-shaped boot.
The car goes on sale next Spring when I will bring you a full Irish test. The price should start at a reasonably €120,000 (or thereabouts). A bit of a bargain (despite VRT), to put it another way an five seat M5 will costs about €100,000 less than the equivalent Porsche 911 Turbo.
As a kid 100 bhp was powerful, now this one yoke has 507 - Wow!
If the new ‘M5’ were a novel it would have to be called “The sum of all cars”.
- Michael Sheridan
