NEW BMW M5 IS RECORD BREAKER

Created Date: 11/07/2011

The BMW M5 needs no introduction. It’s pretty much the staple for performance saloon cars. Spanning a long and illustrious history of more than 25 years, the Motorsport team have constantly raised the bar with their high performance spin off of the 5-Series. With the last true M5 release being the E60 M5 way back in 2005, BMW have come out with a completely new model codename “F10”, which is due in November. Despite the fact that it is yet to be released, the new M5 is breaking records already. Just a few days after its official launch, Motoring website TeamSpeed reported that the 2012 BMW M5 had become the fastest sedan around the Nürburgring race track with a time of 7:55. Taking this time into account, it puts the new M5 right up with the likes of the Porsche Panamera Turbo (7:56) and the Cadillac CTS-V (7:59); astounding for a road going saloon.

Record breaks aside; the car has undergone some significant changes this year that should make you rather happy: the first of which being the exterior. The standard 5-Series was a bit hit and miss on the looks department – it’s simple and functional styling did little to impress the eye, but they’ve managed to put all that behind them in wake of the M5 monster. Side air intakes, huge grilles and sharp contour lines are back in fashion, cementing the M5’s theme of an aggressive powerhouse on wheels. It sits on a new set of 19 inch M series alloy wheels in a double spoke design and carries the typical twin pipe exhaust system which helps it to look that little bit sportier.

The interior continues this same sporty design with M branded sports seats, fine-grain Merino leather upholstery with extended features, door sills with more M5 branded lettering, an M driver’s footrest, exclusive Aluminium Trace interior trim strips, and the BMW Individual roof liner in Anthracite. Standard equipment will include an iDrive control system with an up to 10.2-inch Control Display.

The steering wheel will feature controls that will allow the driver to operate the cruise control system and the audio and telephone functions. The driver will also be able to pre-configure the car for specific road types, thanks to the two M Drive buttons named “M1” and “M2”. These can be used as hot keys to save specific settings relevant to your driving style and choose between them on the fly.

The engine is something of a revolution for BMW, as it’s the first to use a turbocharger as opposed to the more naturally aspirated engines of old. This may disappoint hardcore enthusiasts who enjoy the high revs and old school feel of previous M5’s, but the figures most definitely speak for themselves. BMW report that power is up by roughly 10 percent, torque by 30 percent, and fuel efficiency also by 30 percent versus its 2009 predecessor. This is all thanks to their new 560hp 4.4 litre V8, which manages to deliver a peak torque of 502 lb-ft and a maximum peak rev limit of 7200. It’ll get from 0-60 in 4.4 seconds and onto a limited top speed of 150mph; remove the limiter and you’re looking at a insanely quick 190mph top speed. Any old school fanboys who were worried the turbo would impact on its performance... all is most definitely well.

It looks like BMW are once again onto a winner with this one and if the record breaks and engine revolutions are anything to go by, this should be a worthwhile evolution for the M brand. Deliveries in Germany and the rest of Western Europe start in December of this year, with Asia following shortly after in February of 2012 and the U.S. having to wait until at least Early May. Expect them all to get snapped up fast, so get your orders in quickly!

Article written by: Tom Wellburn

Sources
http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/23/2012-bmw-m5-unveiled-at-nurburgring-24/
http://www.topspeed.com/cars/bmw/2012-bmw-m5-ar100010.html

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