BMW M5 2012 review

Something is missing from the new M5. All the numbers alongside BMW's newest go-faster hero car add up to something special, from the torque and power figures to a genuine 305km/h top speed.

But when you drive the car those numbers don't add up to a special car in the same way as the previous V10-powered M5 rortmobile. This one doesn't tug you on the sleeve and suggest you should head out - right now - for some naughtiness. Instead, what the M5 of 2011 has become is an adult grand tourer with the sort of serious slugging power that keeps it near the top of the heavyweight class of sports sedans.

It can be soft and almost gentle for highway cruising, something you could never have said about the previous M5 with its Formula One-inspired engine and an almost M3- style approach to sporty driving. But open the taps in the new twin-turbo V8 at almost any speed and this M5 is capable of pinning you in the seat and opening your eyes. It's a new benchmark for the big daddy in the M-car family and, because it also hangs onto the basics that make the everyday 5 Series the current benchmark in its class, it's a serious contender at every level.

VALUE

The new one came in at $230,000 – well below the outgoing M5’s price of $241,000. However, the new M5 gets substantially more equipment and that means a major value boost that's becoming typical for the brand as BMW fights hard to retain its current owners and win converts in Australia.

The car is fully equipped in the way you expect of an M5, from a soft leather interior with sports seats to a full suite of entertainment choices, impressive split-system aircon, a head-up display for the driver - but don't bother with your polarized sunglasses - and M badges and fixtures including the steering wheel and even the driver's footrest.

It looks as if BMW plans to undercut its biggest rival, the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG at $240,985, as well as making things much tougher for anything from Audi with an RS badge, and even the Jaguar XFR at $207,905 and upcoming XF-RS.

TECHNOLOGY

The Efficient Dynamics drive at BMW has even caught up to the M5. It's  designed to go light on fuel, with economy as much as one-third better than the old car, but that's only when you're taking it easy on the GT. If you want to boogie, the technology in the M5 starts with the multi- mode twin-turbo 4.4-litre V8. Cynics will say it's just the same force- fed lump designed for the un-M SUV twins, the X6 and X5 Ms, but it's had a lot more work for M5 work on everything from the cylinder heads and inlet system.

So the car makes 412 kiloWatts with 680 Newton-metres, with claimed economy of 9.9 litres/100km and CO2 emissions of 232 grams/kilometre. The biggest change from the SUV tuning is an extra 1000 revs at the top end, although that's still more than 1000 short of the old V10... For the record, the new M5 will thump to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds and has a Nurburgring time below eight minutes, undercutting the 8:05 of the old model.

The new M5 has the expected multi-mode settings for engine/ transmission, steering and suspension, as well as significantly upgraded brakes - although there is nothing special on the rear, because of the electronic park brake fitted to the ordinary Fives - and ESP settings. The gearbox is now a seven-speed twin-clutch automated manual that removes, M says, any need for a manual while making full-auto life much easier than before.

DESIGN

The M5 is not intended to be a 'look-at-me' car and there are plenty of stories from Europe of people buying a car without the badges, and downgrading the alloys, to blend into traffic like a basic 520d.

Although the rocket-launcher exhaust pipes give things away these days. The car is relatively subtle despite pump-up work on the guards, those hefty alloys, a more-aggressive nose to keep the V8 happy and primed with air, and the tiny lip spoiler on the bootlid. Inside, the look and feel is more luxury than loonatic, as BMW believes M5 buyers are considerably older and softer than the hard cases who go all the way with an M3 GTS for track time.

SAFETY

A five-star ANCAP rating is a gimme for the M5. The basic Five has already cleared the bar and there is nothing to suggest anything different for the M-car, despite the gaping cooling holes in the nose that don't look particularly pedestrian friendly. Its line-up of active safety systems - from the brakes to the electronic stability and steering and brake packages - also means it's much more likely to help you avoid a crash than other Fives, or lesser cars. Not that it's an easy car to tame.

DRIVING

The new M5 is a great drive. It makes life easy and enjoyable on boring freeway stretches yet you always know there is a sledgehammer hidden beneath the luxury stuff. When I crack on through the first twisty bits it responds with everything I expect from a new M car. Almost.

The performance is epic, particularly through the middle range when the turbos are forcing the pace, when the V8 fires the car from corner to corner. The gearbox is great, too, with almost-seamless changes and the ability to downshift late for tightening curves or unexpected traffic. The turbos also provide some WRX-style exhaust thumps and pops that remind you of the M connection. But…

There is a noticeable turbo delay when you first crack the throttle, especially during low-speed overtaking, and the huge torque easily overpowers the giant rear tyres and has the traction control working overtime. On the race track the M5 cranks out its laps and allows some tail sliding silliness.

The basic chassis setting gives slight front-end push, as I found on public roads, but the power and weight - more than 1800 kilograms - means its always up for a slide, even with the M. The V8 engine is a thumper. The M5 has abilities beyond most drivers yet I find - despite an annoying pace car - that it's not as sharp as I expect.

It's more like a Nissan GT-R, whose computers overrule the driver, than an M3 or even an E63. And that's the bottom line. The new M5 is not intended as a track car, but as a hugely fast GT for adults who like their performance without any rawness or unpleasantries.

BMW M has done a top job as always and so the new M5 is a relaxed and relaxing tourer that can easily cover vast distances, and make fewer fuel stops than in the past along the way, but also get up and go, go, go and go. It's a car to cherish and enjoy, and one that's going to make a lot of grown-ups very, very happy.

VERDICT

A brilliant new M5, just missing the final edge of greatness.