This M5 uses the company’s xDrive all-wheel-drive system available on all BMW SUVs, unlike its predecessors. Under the hood sits a heavily reworked 4.4-litre turbocharged V8 motor that puts out a whopping 600hp. The M5 is claimed to hit 100kph in 3.4 seconds and can go on to hit a top speed of 304kph.
M division boss Frank van Meel stated, “Thanks to M xDrive, the New BMW M5 offers true rear-wheel-drive-like driving traits as well as significantly enhanced directional stability and controllability right up to the limits of performance, even when driving in adverse conditions such as in the wet or snow.”
Weight-saving initiatives include an aluminium bonnet, carbonfibre roof, a boot-mounted lithium ion battery and a lightweight exhaust system. There’s a new eight-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox with remote steering-wheel-mounted shift paddles.
The significant difference is the adoption of all-wheel drive, which is a first for the M5. This allows the car to offer a variety of different driving modes, the most aggressive of which is M Dynamic that’s designed for track use.
The new M5 will go on sale in the UK in February next year. There is no word so far on when the car will make its way to India.