Suddenly, everyone is going wagon crazy. BMW has unveiled the new twin-turbo V8 hybrid-powered M5 Touring, and it’s the best competition to the dominant Audi RS 6 Avant Performance yet.
Priced from AU$263,900 plus on-road costs in Australia, it comes with a hefty price premium over the more “affordable” Audi (priced from AU$241,500 plus on-road costs). However, it delivers a truckload more power, some 535kW and 1,000Nm of torque from the 4.4-litre M TwinPower Turbo V8 and electric motor configuration. Still, that’s not enough to hand it the crown in a straight line, being 0.2 seconds slower than the Audi RS 6 in the 0-100km/h sprint with a time of 3.6 seconds, all thanks to a severe weight penalty.
Yep, there’s no dancing around the fact the new BMW M5 Touring weighs 2,560kg, making it heavier than most performance SUVs. The Range Rover Sport SV weighs 2,485kg, the BMW X5 M Competition MHEV weighs 2,400kg, and even the new hybrid V8 Lamborghini Urus SE weighs 2,550kg. Still, we don’t expect that to detract much from the driving experience, and the M5 Touring is shaping up to be a weapon.
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Let’s start with the M HYBRID system derived from the World Endurance Championship (WEC), which powers the new BMW M5. Unlike some competitors, the brand hasn’t downsized its engine, using the same basic 4.4-litre M TwinPower Turbo V8 from the previous car, which produces 430kW and 750Nm in this application.
Power has been added with electricity, and it all starts with a 145kW, 280Nm electric motor integrated into the transmission. This is a significantly different set-up from other four-door performance cars, like the Mercedes-AMG C63 S E Performance, which uses an axle-mounted electric motor set-up. The M5’s electric motor is supplied power by a 18.6kWh battery, which, unlike the AMG, offers up to 61 km of all-electric range.
Combined, the BMW M5 outputs 535kW and 1,000Nm of torque. However, full power is only realised for short bursts with the new BOOST mode, enabled by a long pull of the left gearshift paddle between 30km/h and 150km/h. This is typical of most hybrid sports cars, and few will give full power at all times.
This power is sent to the ground with an 8-speed Steptronic transmission and then the highly-regarded M xDrive all-wheel-drive system and electronically controlled Active M Differential.
While the M HYBRID V8 powertrain is the most impressive feature of this new M5, the suspension is arguably the most important. It has a tough job fighting against physics, but with a double-wishbone front axle and a five-link rear axle with bespoke kinematics and elastokinematics, it sounds more than capable of delivering the performance we expect from a BMW M car. The dampers themselves are an adaptive M unit, and they’re electronically controlled to balance comfort for daily driving and performance.
You’ll be glad to hear the new M5 comes with rear-axle steering to add maneuverability to the 5,096mm long vehicle. It’s also 1,970 in width, making it 36mm longer and 70mm wider than the all-electric BMW i5 M60 xDrive Touring.
Step inside, and you’ll find all of the luxury items we’ve come to expect from BMW, including the large BMW infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and wireless charging tray, alongside steering wheel heating, seat heating in the front and rear, active seat ventilation in the front, M seat belts, and a panorama glass roof (non-opening) with plenty of other standard features we’ve listed below. Notably, the 18-speaker Bowers & Wilkins surround sound system is standard in Australia.
As expected, the luggage capacity of the BMW M5 Touring ranges from 500 to 1,630 litres, which makes it a perfect choice for long-distance travel. Still, that’s almost identical to the ‘smaller’ BMW M3 Touring because of the space taken up by the batteries.
The new BMW M5 Touring is priced from AU$263,900 plus on-road costs in Australia, and customer deliveries are expected to start in Q1, 2025. It will come at a slight price premium over the BMW M5 sedan, which is priced from AU$259,900 plus on-road costs, and will be launched in Australia from Q4 this year.
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