M5 HERITAGE:
A Proud Tradition of 4-Door Sports Cars
Like any BMW vehicle with the big “M” in its model name, the M5 is a creation of BMW M. The full name of this legendary BMW subsidiary is BMW M GmbH: GmbH is the German abbreviation for a limited-liability company (LLC), normally associated with companies smaller than the AG (stock-corporation) type such as BMW AG. It is also separate; irreverent Americans might refer to it as a “skunk works,” and as long as you put that in the German context of precision and perfection, it’s a fair characterization.
Employing just a few hundred associates, BMW M is headquartered in the small municipality of Garching, Germany, north of BMW’s home city of Munich. BMW M also maintains an engine-development facility in the north of Munich, which is where the engineering of both the M3 6-cylinder power unit and the M5’s new V-10 took place.
M5 heritage:
three previous generations
The original M Car was the M1, an exotic mid-engine sports car of 1979 that today commands 6-figure prices on the collector-vehicle market. The M5 first appeared in the U.S. in the 1988 model year and there have been two further generations before the new one. An M6 based on the then-current 6 Series appeared first as the M635CSi in Europe in 1984, and was then offered in the U.S. as the M6 in 1987-88. The M3, BMW M’s most popular model in terms of production volume, came out in 1986 and was available in the U.S. from 1988 through 1991; a 2nd generation followed in ’92 and came to America in ’95. The present M3 generation has been available in the U.S. since ’02. And though it wasn’t named M8, a high-performance model developed by BMW M, called 850CSi, topped off the 8 Series in 1994-95.
The 1st-generation M5, sharing its 256-hp M 6-cylinder engine with the M6, actually made its European debut in 1984 but was offered in the U.S. just for a single model year, ’88. It was based on the then-5 Series generation, the E28, and launched the concept that lives on today in the newest M5: a practical, roomy 4-door sedan with sports-car performance. In its January ’87 issue, Road & Track termed the M5 “a world-class supercar, pure and simple.”
A sleeker model followed as the 2nd-generation M5, in Europe in ’88 and in the U.S. in ’91. Its basis was the E34 5 Series; under its hood was the same basic 6-cylinder M engine as before – then as now, with an individual throttle for each cylinder – but putting out no less than 310 hp. BMW’s official 0-60-mph time was 6.1 seconds, sensational for those days; Car and Driver reported just 5.6 sec. In December ’90, Road & Track named the M5 as one of its Ten Best Cars in the World for 1991 and described it as “a beautifully luxurious 4-door sedan, dare we emphasize even a practical one, but with the soul of a race car.”
As the immediate predecessor to the new ’06 M5, the 3rd-generation model was launched in Europe in ’98, in the U.S. for model year ’00. It was based on the landmark E39 5 Series, which introduced such innovations as aluminum suspension, standard All Season Traction and Cornering Brake Control, and an articulated windshield wiper that improved outward vision in bad weather. The M5’s own innovations included BMW M’s first V-8 engine: a 4.9-liter, 394-hp masterpiece that powered this more-luxurious-than-ever sedan to 60 mph in 4.8 sec. Comparing the M5 with two of its competitors in January ‘99, Automobile Magazine concluded: “But the M5 has the most communicative steering, the strongest brakes, the sweetest chassis, and a simply awesome engine. A faster and more complete 4-door all-arounder has yet to be invented.”
That was then; this is now. With the newest M5, BMW has indeed invented an even faster, even more complete “4-door all-arounder” that sets new standards for just how much sports-car performance and driving pleasure can be packed into a luxury sedan. And yet as wonderful as it is, the new M5 is not merely a crowning achievement of BMW M’s unique capabilities. It is also the product of a unique heritage, a singular focus on performance automobiles that deliver a specific blend of performance and luxury. As Road & Track put it so succinctly in its December ’04 story on the new M5, it’s “the sports-car driver’s 4-door.” That’s what all M5s have been; with each succeeding generation, BMW M achieves an ever better harmony of performance and luxury.