2025 Fat A** BMW M5

[Roadhawk]

A few mentions of the CT 4 V BW as being at least as capable as the M2. I still occasionally think "what if" as I thought the M2 comp might be our next car. Mostly though no regrets.

 

[Roadhawk]

A few mentions of the CT 4 V BW as being at least as capable as the M2. I still occasionally think "what if" as I thought the M2 comp might be our next car. Mostly though no regrets.

BTW - those Apex wheels on his M2 same as on my BW.

 

[BimmerFan]

A few mentions of the CT 4 V BW as being at least as capable as the M2. I still occasionally think "what if" as I thought the M2 comp might be our next car. Mostly though no regrets.

I had an M2. It's terribly overrated, IMHO.

 

[dinkman]

I had an M2. It's terribly overrated, IMHO.

interesting, which one? never had one but always considered it.

 

[Roadhawk]

interesting, which one? never had one but always considered it.

Second that. I've always thought the 1M & M2s - of the newer M cars in the last 5+ years were the most true to BMWs past and core (excepting the latest gen). They seemed like the successors to the e46 series - relatively small and on the somewhat lighter side and a real hoot driving wise.

 

[white98ls]

Little known fact: Jesus's first ride home vehicle after his birth was a BMW ox cart, with the M sport package.

That Shadowline trim really popped for that model year.

 

[BimmerFan]

interesting, which one? never had one but always considered it.

The OG, 2018 I believe, with the manual transmission, natch.

It had the usual BMW manual transmission foibles, lousy shifter, horrendous clutch with the CDV built-into the slave, just a miserable ride quality that hopped over bad roads and probably the worse road noise since my 991.1 911 that I have ever experienced in a stock factory car. I wore earplugs on trips longer than 30 minutes.

On top of that, mine had the performance exhaust system, which was hideously loud and droned on the highway. It shined on the track at 4000+ RPM, but it would kill you on the way to the track. The short wheelbase did not give you the razor-sharp handling that you'd expect, rather it was really quick to step out on you and didn't communicate its intent very well. Stock, it understeered worse than you'd expect from an ///M car. I never bothered with camber plates and such because I figured that it would just make the ride and NVH even worse. Yes, I tracked it and no, it was not as enjoyable as I had hoped. I had initially driven these at BMW's performance center and on perfectly smooth pavement and playing games/exercises on flooded surfaces it was fun, autocross, etc. but in the real world, not so much.

My particular car (bought new) had numerous iDrive issues and steering rack issues, compounded by incompetent and careless BMW techs that required multiple return visits. Once I got all of that settled out, it was fine, reliability-wise.

My particular car also had all of the extra CF bits which looked really good, and the car overall looked the business.

Power was also lacking a bit, I thought, for the money. Later editions overcame some of that, but then you're stuck with the DCT.

 

[Roadhawk]

Well said Bimmerfan - makes total sense. I always loved the 1 M and though I thought subsequent M2s seemed softened up (maybe not according to your ride experience) - I thought the M2 comp got it right....CS probably more so....but cost was way high.

I still like the smaller - shorter wheelbase cars even if a bit less stable. However one of the reasons I feel the CT 4 V BW was/is the right car for us is its dual character - raucous when pushed but very livable otherwise. Wife likes it and also insisted on a sedan vs a coup. So we're good. MT was a must for me....why we're not already in an RS3...

 

[dinkman]

The OG, 2018 I believe, with the manual transmission, natch.

It had the usual BMW manual transmission foibles, lousy shifter, horrendous clutch with the CDV built-into the slave, just a miserable ride quality that hopped over bad roads and probably the worse road noise since my 991.1 911 that I have ever experienced in a stock factory car. I wore earplugs on trips longer than 30 minutes.

On top of that, mine had the performance exhaust system, which was hideously loud and droned on the highway. It shined on the track at 4000+ RPM, but it would kill you on the way to the track. The short wheelbase did not give you the razor-sharp handling that you'd expect, rather it was really quick to step out on you and didn't communicate its intent very well. Stock, it understeered worse than you'd expect from an ///M car. I never bothered with camber plates and such because I figured that it would just make the ride and NVH even worse. Yes, I tracked it and no, it was not as enjoyable as I had hoped. I had initially driven these at BMW's performance center and on perfectly smooth pavement and playing games/exercises on flooded surfaces it was fun, autocross, etc. but in the real world, not so much.

My particular car (bought new) had numerous iDrive issues and steering rack issues, compounded by incompetent and careless BMW techs that required multiple return visits. Once I got all of that settled out, it was fine, reliability-wise.

My particular car also had all of the extra CF bits which looked really good, and the car overall looked the business.

Power was also lacking a bit, I thought, for the money. Later editions overcame some of that, but then you're stuck with the DCT.
View attachment 26661

wow. good to know. thanks cross that off the list forever! lol

 

[Roadhawk]

wow. good to know. thanks cross that off the list forever! lol

The new/current one is not appealing to me at all based on a number of factors - weight - no MT (I don't think), video game interior, unappealing exterior etc etc. Reviewers seem to be mixed - Chris Harris loves it - but others claim while is fully competent and then some its just not that fun to drive.

 

[white98ls]

The new/current one is not appealing to me at all based on a number of factors - weight - no MT (I don't think), video game interior, unappealing exterior etc etc. Reviewers seem to be mixed - Chris Harris loves it - but others claim while is fully competent and then some its just not that fun to drive.

New M2 does have a (BMW) manual.

 

[Roadhawk]

New M2 does have a (BMW) manual.

Yeah, wasn't sure. Still...even, like most new M cars and such, where the performance (on paper) exceeds that of older cars/versions....these new cars/Ms are decidedly less interesting to me than those that came before. Prior gen M2 (and perhaps the Z4 & Supra) are the last of the performance BMWs that seem to at least (in part) embody the spirit of BMWs of old. Such a shame.

Here's to all the owners of those older BMWs keeping them in good shape so they'll still be around for all of us to appreciate.

 

[Z51L9889]

Oof. Someone beat the 2025 M5 real hard with the ugly stick. And 5000+ pounds!!?? Epic fail!

 

[Z51L9889]

 

[white98ls]

It just LOOKS heavy moving around, and sounds like nothing.

 

[dizz81]

It just LOOKS heavy moving around, and sounds like nothing.

Looking at that still shot of the front of the car just makes me dislike the design even more. Gone are the days of good/sexy looking BMW's.

 

[dinkman]

Looking at that still shot of the front of the car just makes me dislike the design even more. Gone are the days of good/sexy looking BMW's.

The worse part is this is one of their better looking newer cars

 

[rdollie]

The worse part is this is one of their better looking newer cars

Exactly! At least this new Panzer doesn't have the giant-sized kidney grills or the wanky split-level headlights of the 7 series spaceship.

 

[BimmerFan]

To quote the car salesman from Vacation, "If you think you hate it now, wait until you drive it!"

But seriously folks, I'll bet it drives great. Except for the weight. And the befuddling infotainment system. And the very stiff ride. And the weight.

 

[Orange Whip]

Looks like the 2028 M5 has been spotted road testing:

There’s a 771,000-Pound Submarine Crossing Germany by Road Right Now

U betcha that's a U-boat. Germans are towing a colossal submarine through town and live-streaming it.

www.thedrive.com