The arrival of the new BMW M5 and BMW M5 Competition sees the high-performance sedans from BMW M GmbH returning to the stage in even sharper form.
With its stylistic fine-tuning, an operating concept honed to good effect and a central display enlarged to 12.3 inches, the new BMW M5 is a more compelling proposition than ever.
Featuring new shock absorbers from the BMW M8 Gran Coupé and a retuned chassis, the immensely powerful and dynamic BMW M5 Competition offers even better driveability and handling at the limit, combined with superior comfort levels.
As a result, the BMW M5 and BMW M5 Competition blend a business sedan's unruffled everyday usability with unbeatable highperformance sports car dynamics to alluring effect.
Like the other models in the BMW 5 Series line-up, the new BMW M5 and BMW M5 Competition both sport an updated, new-look BMW kidney grille.
The LED headlights and LED rear lights also have a sharper appearance, while the front apron - with its large air intakes - and the rear apron have been sculpted to even more dramatic effect.
Inside the cabin, the larger central touchscreen display immediately catches the eye.
The straightforward method of individually configuring and selecting various driving modes via two buttons in the centre console has been adopted from the BMW M8.
In the BMW M5, the 4.4-litre V8 engine with BMW M TwinPower Turbo technology generates 441 kW/600 hp, while in the BMW M5 Competition the high-revving unit produces 460 kW/625 hp.
Credit for negotiating the dynamic tightrope between full everyday usability on the one hand and driving pleasure and exceptional track performance on the other goes to the M xDrive system and its centralised intelligent control approach for the Active M Differential.
As an alternative to variable all-wheel-drive mode (4WD) with its rear-biased baseline setup, handling characteristics can be altered by varying degrees up to 2WD mode.
This pure rear-wheel drive setting without DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) treats accomplished drivers to completely unadulterated driving pleasure.