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BMW’s M division has kicked off development of the fifth-generation M5, 25 years after the first model went on sale in the UK.

The new performance saloon, known internally under the codename F10M and due to make its first public appearance at the Frankfurt motor show in 2011, is set to mark a major departure from its predecessors by adopting turbocharging for the first time.

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Just a ploy by BMW to jump the gun (by two years??) and steal some thunder from the Mercedes E63 AMG.

 The Mercedes E63 AMG never had the Thunder

 The mercedes has power and has space if you buy the estate version but it doesnt handle now what good is that in a fast car?

 

M5 and XF are the cars you want :) 

According to most publications, the new E63 is very fleet-footed and athletic. This seems to be the case with all new Mercedes-AMG's. A welcome change for sure.

The M5..............the gearbox sucks in normal driving and start-stop traffic. The ride quality also sucks too. The thing is, the M5 is great when you drive it at 9/10 or 10/10. But not so good in normal driving. The new E63, I suspect, plays the Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde much better.

 

Longer gearing, turbo engine, electric steering.......  This isn't a true M car.  Shouldn't they be calling the 5 series M?

 

 

 Yes, they should. I think we have seen the last proper M car, it seems to be little more than a trim level with a big engine attached these days. I would have preferred them to keep the M badge for things with genuine motorsport thinking built in, of which the E46 M3 looks like the last to me.

Am really worried about the electric steering system. It has not worked for both Z4's. Stick to a purer hydralic system

TegTypeR :

I agree with you. The M5 is dead. A M must have a noble engine, a NA engine.

Sad days...

 

Why won't autocar be critical in some way towards BMW. This story tries to do nothing more than promote in a positive way the M5.

And yet...in no REAL way is there anything PROMOTED that indicated that the car will be a more M type of car.

 In the end all this marketing hype by both the media and the makers will fail, and new manufacturers will spring up as manufacturing cars becomes easier/cheaper. J

Chunkster:

.... The ride quality also sucks too...

Really? I'm guessing the one you've driven must've had a problem with its suspension, because according to Autocar's full test of the M5, for an ultra fast supersaloon, its ride quality is pretty damn decent.

 http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/RoadTestsOnTheRoad/BMW-5-Series-M5/212071/

 ".....We have often said that run-flat tyres and active steering spoil the fine road manners of the 5-series, so the fact that BMW’s Motorsport arm has no truck with such items is more than a little telling. Shorn of these features, the M5 provides an object lesson in high-end chassis and steering development. From the way it tackles tight B-roads to the way it rides your average British high street, the M5 impresses massively and proves deeply satisfying. And it’s not as if you must sacrifice a significant degree of body control to enjoy such cossetting progress.

Beyond the wonderful damping, you have the ..."