The BMW M5 has always been the benchmark for the fast executive saloon – a car that can take you to a business meeting, then to a track day, and finally back home in comfort. The new generation, however, changes the formula.
This is only the third M5 Touring in the model’s history, after the E34 and E61, and the first to feature a hybrid powertrain. The reaction has been predictably intense. Many mock the design – and especially the weight of over 2.5 tonnes. Ironically, almost none of those critics have actually driven it.
Are the criticisms justified? We test the BMW M5 Touring.
Design
The M5 Touring immediately stands out for its sheer presence. It’s enormous – literally and visually. At 5.10 metres long and 1.97 metres wide, it’s seven centimetres wider than the standard 5 Series, thanks to flared wheel arches designed to accommodate massive 285 mm front tyres and 295 mm rear tyres, along with the increased track width.
Its presence is not just physical but visual. I won’t hide it – the front end slightly reminds me of Sid from Ice Age. An association I suspect many people share, judging by online comments. Still, the car looks genuinely muscular, as if it’s about to burst under the power hidden within. Yet in the spirit of classic M5 models, it remains relatively discreet in the eyes of non-enthusiasts.
Interestingly, the wheelbase of the M5 Touring is about a centimetre longer than that of the standard Touring. Unusual, and likely related to its specially developed rear suspension setup.
Personally, I find the rear end the most appealing angle. It looks powerful and complete, with quad exhaust pipes, a decorative diffuser and vertically positioned reflectors in the bumper. Love it or hate it, the M5 Touring is an impressive sight. The test car wore a matte grey finish that suits it perfectly, but if you want something bolder, BMW Individual offers more than 150 colours.
Interior
The interior is familiar from the standard 5 Series, but with clear M-specific upgrades. The sports seats are deeply sculpted with excellent lateral support. The steering wheel is thick and features the signature red M1 and M2 buttons for quick access to customised driving modes. M logos are everywhere.
Space is a strong point, with a genuinely spacious second row. The boot capacity is 500 litres – the same as the smaller M3 Touring, which is an interesting detail.
The design follows BMW’s current minimalist philosophy. Physical buttons are almost gone, and the front air vents are so well hidden that at first you wonder how to adjust them. Most controls are capacitive – even the hazard light button. It looks modern, but it’s not particularly practical, especially while driving. Glossy surfaces also attract fingerprints and require frequent cleaning.
Ambient lighting integrated into the trim reacts with colours and pulsations depending on your actions. Visually impressive, but for me somewhat unnecessary.
The good news is that the rotary infotainment controller remains, along with shortcut buttons – though these are now capacitive as well. That means you can’t operate them blindly; you have to look at them. So to press the right button, you must briefly take your eyes off the road. The irony? BMW has built an excellent driver assistance system that allows you to look away from the road while you look at the buttons you shouldn’t need to look at. Absurd? Read that again.
The curved central display is large, with excellent resolution and fast response times. The voice assistant works well, but has limitations. It understands me most of the time, but if passengers are talking, communication becomes chaotic. One advantage is that I can deactivate the speed warning via voice command – although honestly, I’d prefer a physical button… or better yet, for the warning not to exist at all.
Build quality is good, but the sense of luxury was stronger in the previous 5 Series generation. Noticeable compromises include hard plastic on the indicator and wiper stalks and unlined door pockets. On the positive side, the Alcantara headliner and carbon fibre trim give it a properly special feel.
On the Road
The car weighs 2.5 tonnes – a lot even for an SUV, let alone a super sports estate. That weight demands something special under the bonnet. Ironically, the special powertrain is one of the main reasons for the high weight. A vicious circle: power compensates for weight, and weight demands more power.
Under the bonnet sits a 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 producing 585 hp and revving to 7,200 rpm. Integrated into the transmission is a 197 hp electric motor. Combined output is 727 hp and 1,000 Nm of torque. The battery allows around 60 kilometres of electric range – sufficient for city driving, if you can resist awakening the eight-cylinder engine.
The gearbox is an eight-speed automatic, and power goes to all four wheels. 0–100 km/h takes 3.6 seconds, and with the M Driver’s Package, top speed reaches 305 km/h.
Massive carbon-ceramic brakes handle stopping duties. According to independent measurements, braking from 100 km/h takes roughly 32 metres. At 300 km/h, you’d need around 500 metres. I can’t verify that – the M5 is a road car, and that’s where I drove it.
In the city, the M5 can be surprisingly civilised. In hybrid mode, it’s quiet, and ride comfort is acceptable. The adaptive suspension offers a “Comfort” mode, which on Sofia’s streets I would call “not too bad.” Still perfectly reasonable for this type of car. You do need to be cautious over bumps – ground clearance is just 11.8 cm, and the wheelbase exceeds three metres. And we all know how unpredictable speed bumps can be.
There’s another urban advantage: people suddenly give way. A curious psychological phenomenon… which proves the car isn’t as discreet as it might seem.
The parking assistant is particularly useful, remembering the entry path and reversing the car out of tight spaces. It works flawlessly.
The M5’s true character reveals itself outside the city. On open roads, it’s stable and reasonably quiet, though tyre noise from the wide rubber is noticeable. Overtaking is effortless, and in Comfort mode the car behaves predictably, allowing you to drive fast yet safely.
Switching to Sport mode via the M2 button (configured in moderately aggressive settings – I value my life), the car disguises its 2.5-tonne weight surprisingly well. On track, the mass would likely be more apparent, but the M5 is not a track-focused machine.
Acceleration is brutally quick, with barely perceptible traction loss for fractions of a second. Brakes are progressive and immensely powerful.
Cornering behaviour is almost perfectly neutral – so much so that you wonder whether it’s reality or simulation. The rear wheels, steering up to 1.5 degrees, can make subtle corrections independently to maintain the ideal line.
It’s impressive. But the combination of immense power and the mass of a young elephant is also intimidating. If something goes wrong, there’s no easy recovery. Control feels as much in the car and in my rational judgement as in my hands. And that raises the question: is this what we truly want from a sports car?
Conclusion
The M5 Touring is an engineering achievement that pushes the boundaries of physics, regulations and engineering logic. It electrifies with its power and the way it delivers it to the road. At the same time, it offers generous space, high comfort and practicality.
And yet, for me, it isn’t fully inspiring.
When driving dynamically, I feel that control isn’t entirely mine. Power exists to compensate for weight, and weight exists because of power. At some point, you begin to question whether it all makes sense.
And here’s where the alternative appears: the M3 Touring. Roughly €50,000 less expensive, arguably more beautiful, with the same boot capacity and comparable performance – but with something the M5 seems to have partly lost: character.
— Eng. Tsvetan Iliev
