The new BMW M5, successor to the F10 and first of its line to introduce more driven wheels than the rear pair, has been revealed ahead of schedule - likely to greatly annoy the Munich automaker’s product marketing department.
The leaked photos were strung together and shown as part of a slideshow-style Youtube video, and are frankly a little more jagged and grainy than we would’ve preferred. Still, they’re defined enough to give us all that we needed to know about the F90-generation M5.
Can we also just say that BMW’s internal codenames are making less and less sense.
As with the new newest G30 5-Series, this new M5 doesn’t really bring with it any sort of dramatic styling changes, instead takes a more evolutionary step in the direction defined by the last generation of BMWs. Besides some new bits and perhaps a slightly more overtly aggressive touches, there’s not much of a jump here from the M550i xDrive.
But that’s not where the meat of the story is, nor is that the case with any M car, to be sure. And we already knew, more or less, what this new M5 would wind up looking like thanks to BMW releasing a whole bunch of images of a thinly disguised late prototype sliding around a tight and technical circuit.
Under the skin, though, the M5 is sure to move the game significantly forward over the outgoing model. While we’ll be detailing the full extent of those changes once the car has been officially revealed, skimming the known information is enough to make a strong case.
Powering the F90 is an improved version of the 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine from its predecessor, boosted here to what’s purported to be 447kW or slightly higher - though it could do without that rather tacky glossy carbon-fibre engine cover. Thanks to its all-wheel drive and its new carbon-polymer architecture, there’s more potential to be unlocked by the chassis engineers.
We also get a first look at the interior, which improves upon the already excellent ergonomics and finish of the 5 Series with touches of carbon weave, red highlights. Of note are the very supportive two-tone sport bucket seats, looking particularly luxurious in that white perforated leather option. There’s also two buttons unique to the M5 seen here, placed on either side of the steering wheel, painted red with that read ‘M1’ and ‘M2’.
These, of course, are the quick-access controls to the individual driving modes that can be fine-tuned via the iDrive infotainment and vehicle control interface. Speaking of which, the M5’s all-wheel drive behaviour can be altered by selecting either of the new power delivery options: 4WD, 4WD Sport, and 2WD.
While all the M5 competitors such as the Audi RS6 and Mercedes-AMG E63 S 4Matic both feature all-wheel drive and have done so for much longer, they have always erred on the side of have a more static, rear-biased profile. Here, BMW is giving the option to completely decouple the front axle from the driveline, satisfying the need for slithery rear-drive action BMW purists demand.
We’re only hours away from the official unveil of the all-new M5, so stay tuned.
For more on BMW, check out our Showroom.
