2017 BMW M5 previewed ahead of August 21 reveal

Upcoming Mercedes-AMG E63 rival to be first non-SUV M car available with AWD option; expected to produce 624hp.

Published On Aug 18, 2017 06:02:00 AM

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2017 BMW M5 previewed ahead of August 21 reveal

BMW has released a new preview video of the most powerful and technically advanced BMW M5, which will be revealed on August 21.

The upcoming Mercedes-AMG E63 rival can be seen driving at pace through a desert, with shots of its carbon-ceramic brakes and a close up of its front left corner. The shot shows the car's aggressive set of air intakes in the front bumper, as well as the grille-mounted M5 badge.

The clip comes two months after the model was featured in a trailer for the Need For Speed video game franchise. The M5 was also previously revealed in CAD images leaked by a company employee.

Full front and rear styling renderings of the car show the performance saloon's bumper treatment. The images were first revealed to a host of The Cammed and Tubbed Podcast, a weekly automotive podcast.

The launch timing of this next-generation M5 shows BMW's plans to produce M variants far earlier in models' lifecycles than it has done previously.

Just as the regular BMW 5-series underwent a subtle styling overhaul between this generation and the next, the new M5 appears to be fairly restrained when compared with the more extreme M4. However, more significant updates have taken place under the bonnet.

Leaked documents revealed that the M5’s closest rival, the Mercedes-AMG E63, will produce 611hp and 850Nm. It’s expected that the M5 will closely match these figures, using an updated version of the current car’s 4.4-litre V8 petrol engine mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

The upcoming next-generation M5 will be the first non-SUV M car available with all-wheel drive as an option. It is understood that BMW is concentrating on making the next M5 more driveable, with more mechanical grip and improved traction thanks to the xDrive four-wheel-drive system and revised engine mapping. Three drive modes are available through the xDrive system – 4WD, 4WD Sport and 2WD, with the latter driving the rear wheels. More drive modes are available through the car's other drive mode settings.

BMW wouldn't reveal how much power the new M5 would produce aside from "more than 608hp”, but it's expected that 624hp will be produced, with a weight saving of 65kg over the outgoing model, and “significantly more than the current car’s 700Nm of torque," equating to a 0-100kph time of less than 3.5sec.

A new eight-speed torque converter automatic gearbox also features, as does a chain-driven clutch, which takes drive to the front axle on demand. There's also a rear differential developed from the one on the M3 and M4, with carbon clutch blades for quicker and more precise torque vectoring. The M5's suspension also gets new adaptive dampers.

On a drive of a M5 prototype with Autocar UK, our sister publication, BMW M's vice president of engineering, Dirk Hacker, revealed that the new M5 is the first M car to have "a centralised controller with the power to control every sub-system governing lateral and longitudinal dynamics."