Video | BMW M5 saloon

The BMW M5 is a performance car institution, with a history stretching back to the 1980s and a reputation for combining understated saloon car looks with massive power and performance. The way it’s achieved that has changed over the decades as technology has developed, the original race-inspired six-cylinder engines evolving through thundering V8s and high-revving V10s into the turbocharged powerhouses of more recent times. BMW’s signature rear-wheel drive has also been replaced by all-wheel drive as power has increased, albeit with the option to switch the system off and revert to the drifty, tyre-melting balance of old. If you’re feeling brave.
But this new M5 is perhaps the biggest step change in its long history. Yes, the M5 has gone hybrid. And not without controversy. True, it’s still got a thumping, turbocharged V8 under the bonnet like the previous one. And that perfect balance of understated visual muscle, luxury and supercar chasing performance. A combined 727 horsepower and incredible 1,000Nm of torque will see to that. It’s also totally customisable and configurable to your tastes, from the pre-programmable M ’hot keys’ on the steering wheel to settings for sound, brake pedal feel and more. That’s not what’s worrying people, though. No, if there’s one number on the spec sheet troubling the fans it’s the 2.5-tonne kerb weight the addition of electric motors and batteries brings. Begging the question, has BMW ruined the M5? Enter Rory, on a quest to find out once and for all if the latest M5 is the real deal. Or has gone a bit … woke. Watch the video to find out more, and if you liked it make sure you hit like, subscribe to the channel and join the comments thread to share your own thoughts on what BMW has done to its performance icon…