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BMW 7 Series vs BMW M5

What's the difference?

VS
BMW 7 Series
BMW 7 Series

2023 price

BMW M5
BMW M5

$259,900 - $263,900

2025 price

Summary

2023 BMW 7 Series
2025 BMW M5
Safety Rating

Engine Type
Turbo 6, 3.0L

BI Turbo V8, 4.4L
Fuel Type
Premium Unleaded/Electric

Premium Unleaded/Electric
Fuel Efficiency
7.9L/100km (combined)

10.3L/100km (combined)
Seating
5

5
Dislikes
  • Backwards step in tech ease of use
  • Doesn’t feel quite $300K from the driver's seat
  • Design will be divisive

  • Awkward boot
  • Brake and steering feel
  • Low on hooliganism
2023 BMW 7 Series Summary

The BMW 7 Series is Munich’s flagship, the car that fans of the blue and white roundel respect as peak plush motoring.

Now, for the seventh 7 Series, BMW has brought electric power to the table in the form of the i7 in order to stay ahead of the curve.

It’s still joined by a petrol-powered variant here in Australia, the 740i, which is a mild hybrid and shares a lot of the luxury specifications of the i7 - including a properly impressive rear seat theatre screen.

But is it forward-thinking enough to fend off the likes of the Mercedes EQS?

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2025 BMW M5 Summary

Balancing luxury car comfort, hot hatch agility and supercar speed is no easy task, yet that is what made the six previous generations of BMW's M5 so iconic. 

In seventh-generation ‘G90’ guise, the M5 has another skeleton in the cupboard: the toughest emissions regulations that Europe, and now Australia, have ever seen.

A twin-turbo V8 was untenable and going battery electric was not an option. Plug-in hybrid was the only answer. For the new M5, BMW combined a revised 4.4-litre ‘S68’ bent eight with a punchy electric motor for 535kW and 1000Nm

Problem is, the G90 is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest BMW M cars of all time, especially in CS trim. And thanks to a circa-600kg weight hike to nearly 2500kg, the new M5's 0-100km/h claim is actually slower than the old 'F90' M5. 

Doesn’t exactly sound like a big leap forward, does it?

A drive through the Central West of NSW and around the iconic Mount Panorama racing circuit gave us answers to two questions. Does the M5 work on Australia roads, and does BMW M's latest super-sedan represent progress?

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Deep dive comparison

2023 BMW 7 Series 2025 BMW M5

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