- Road testing in the redesigned M5 shows a broader range of performance and comfort
- Plug-in hybrid sedan has a 0-60 mph time of 3.4 seconds
- It costs $120,675, while the Touring wagon variant adds $2,000
Two Rolls-Royce Spectres flanked a $600,000 Cullinan Black Badge Series II, glinting like royalty in the South Carolina sun. Beside it, the cutesy new Mini Cooper S Convertible looked like the Cullinan’s chew toy. Four generations of the BMW X5 courted those who love automotive history, the fourth-generation X3 injected new life into the brand’s bestseller, but of the dozens of new vehicles to drive at BMW’s Performance Center in Spartanburg, I couldn’t—I wouldn’t—steer my attention away from the new M5.
The track beyond the staging area was closed to me, so I tested it on the industrial backroads knotting BMW’s largest factory in the world. Surrounded by semis, redirected by roundabouts, deflected by potholes, the seventh-generation M5 encouraged me to take it for a second and eventually a seventh drive not just because it was the best performance vehicle to play with but because it demonstrated how BMW manages V-8 performance in an increasingly electrified world.
Yes, the performance model of the 5-Series that was redesigned for 2024 (the M5 skipped 2024) adopts V-8 plug-in hybrid powertrain similar to the XM SUV but with a smaller battery pack. If you’ve driven that unsorted beast and you’re porting those perceptions over to the M5 sedan, don’t.
The powertrain is tuned and calibrated differently, with a 577-hp twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V-8 mainlined with a 194-hp electric motor integrated into the brand’s ubiquitous 8-speed automatic. Together, the new M5 puts down 717 hp and 738 lb-ft of torque—performance EV numbers, yet with the primal call of a V-8 and the instant torque of electric propulsion.
2025 M5 electrifies launch control
The M5 obscures its mechanical complexity with a simple dance move. Take it out anywhere, say on a rolling stretch of shiny new asphalt near an industrial complex serving BMW and its many local suppliers. Push the red M2 toggle on the steering wheel, note the stability control button turn off (it’s dialed back), mash the brake pedal, and mash the throttle. The 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster turns roundel blue, and a 10-second timer appears in the cluster.
Let go. And hold on.
It felt as if all four tires chirped letting off the brake, but maybe it was just the larger 295/35-21s at the rear (Hankook Ventus A1 evo Zs from the factory). The all-wheel-drive system shifts to a rear bias when in Sport or Sport+ mode, which are necessary for launch control. A full rear-wheel-drive setting can be selected but it didn’t. Between the two M settings, the Comfort, Sport, and Sport Plus drive modes, and the four electric drivetrain settings, I had my hands full, delightfully so.
Before I had the chance to look down at the speedometer or to exhale, the M5 was at 75 mph. I couldn’t flirt with the top speed of 155 mph, but BMW’s 0-60 mph time of 3.4 seconds felt conservative. That twin-turbo V-8 is so damn visceral and so damn good, even through all the sound deadening so there’s really no need for the augmented sound through the speakers. Adding at least 1,150 pounds, or about 23% more body mass due in part to the usable 14.8-kwh battery pack, can weigh you down.
Good thing for the massive 16.1-inch rotors and 6-piston brake calipers up front—painted red on the tester instead of standard blue—and 15.7-inch rear rotors with single-piston floating calipers. Carbon ceramic brakes are optional and cut 55 pounds but add $8,500. If you’re tracking it regularly, I imagine it’s worth it. On run after run, the brakes grabbed without hesitation or pulsing, and each turn I went deeper down this closed off access road than in the previous trial.
2025 M5: Learning the M Hybrid powertrain settings and M Mode drive modes
The outgoing M5 Competition and its 627-hp V-8 did it in an estimated 3.1 seconds. There are pure EVs that are quicker, too, with a greater gut thrust. The new M5 has a much broader spread in its performance and comfort settings than its predecessor. Then there are the efficiency gains that enable BMW to still produce a V-8 performance sedan for a global market.
The M5 defaults to Hybrid setting on startup, and if it’s in either of the Sport modes the 4.4-liter V-8 asserts its dominance in the M Hybrid powertrain pairing. The Comfort, Sport, Sport Plus drive modes are designated by an M Mode button. In Comfort mode, the electric motor rules by itself, unless you prod the throttle. It’s capable of running its full 25-mile range, or switch the M Hybrid setting to Electric for full emission-free driving until the battery runs out. While cruising on electric power, shifts from the 8-speed automatic transmission may surprise electric vehicle drivers, but I liked its consistent character throughout the drive wheel setting.
An eControl setting acts as a battery saver, relying on engine power alone.
There’s plenty of tire noise while running electric but even at cruising speeds, the M5 is well-insulated from the road. Its independent multi-link front and rear suspension uses steel springs and adaptive dampers that mute the road presence even more in Comfort mode. The modes give it the dual nature of a regal grand tourer despite its performance backbone.
Sport stiffens it, of course, and the extra bracing and reinforcements over the 5-Series become obvious. Over potholes or railroad grades, it jittered reproachfully, so play with the settings purposefully.
It’s best to play with the console-mounted powertrain settings and drive modes to learn your desired preferences on the go. Then when parked, create a driver profile that best suits you by making a deep dive into the 14.9-inch touchscreen. There, you can adjust the drive system, transmission shifts, suspension settings, steering feel, and regenerative brake settings in three levels. I would prefer a hot button for regen settings, but you can set your own profile for these settings to be accessed by the M1 button on the steering wheel.
On winding roads pitched by truck use, the suspension counteracted the uneven grades, and the low, planted feel made me want to push it at higher speeds on the more accessible state highways.
I appreciated the variable-ratio steering in these higher speed sections, where the chunky steering wheel had some heavy resistance resulting in sharp turns, aided by rear-axle steering. It only turns in-phase by 1.5 degrees, so there was no worry about oversteering or wrapping a curve too tightly. It’s a welcome, invisible helper. At cruising speeds, and in Comfort mode, the steering became an almost non-entity, the road a distant suggestion.
2025 BMW M5
2025 BMW M5
2025 BMW M5
2025 BMW M5
2025 M5 specs and price
Like the 5-Series redesigned for 2025, the M5 measures 200.6 inches long—about a foot shorter than the 7-Series—with a generous wheelbase of 118.3 inches. Those are increases of 4.2 inches in length and nearly an inch longer wheelbase than the 2023 M5, so the cabin is slightly roomier and can fit four adults fine. It’s also 2.7 inches wider and more than an inch taller.
The 2025 BMW M5 comes in one configuration starting at $120,675, with a $1,175 destination fee, but the M5 Touring wagon cuts a beautiful shape and has crossover cargo space for $122,675. I only took the Touring on a guided loop, so can’t speak to the dynamic differences from the sedan. For those amounts, BMW lets you choose from most exterior colors and interior trims as well as three wheel and tire combos for no extra charge.
Adding adaptive cruise control with limited hands-free driving costs $1,700, which feels like a rip-off, since most mainstream cars like the Toyota RAV4 have adaptive cruise control as standard.
Even though the EPA hasn’t certified it and BMW’s not mentioning it, the M5 advances BMW’s performance portfolio for the electric age, making it more relevant—and possible—than if it were powered by a V-8 alone. It appeals to a broader type of driver and in a broader spectrum of driving situations, even looping around industrial roads.
BMW flew and housed Motor Authority to a brand overview that included drive opportunities in the M5.
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