The new BMW M5's V8 engine and electric motor combine for 717 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque.Matt Bubbers/The Globe and Mail
Driving toward Munich on a section of Germany’s high-speed motorway, the Autobahn, traffic parted for a fleeting moment as if ordained by the gods, who, like me, must’ve been curious to see what BMW’s all-new 2025 M5 uber-sedan can do with 717 hybrid horsepower. Pressing a red button on the steering wheel puts the car’s V8 engine and its electric motor into maximum-effort mode.
After that, all that’s left to do is stomp on the accelerator and keep my eye on the horizon. From 150 kilometres an hour, the M5 accelerates like it’s pulling away from a standstill. On the head-up display, the numbers tick past in a blur – 210, 250, 270, 280 – and it’s still gunning for the horizon as if being pulled by a magnet: 294, 298, 300, 301 – van!
The white van is a blob in the distance when it pulls into our lane doing maybe 150 kilometres an hour. The highway is still damp from rain earlier in the day, and after a momentary panic and some swearing, it’s clear the M5′s giant carbon-ceramic brakes have got the situation well under control. Despite the car’s hefty 2.4-tonne weight, the brakes scrub off half my speed with plenty of distance to spare.
Top speed is limited to 305 kilometres an hour, but the way the M5 was still accelerating hard at 300 means it could go faster. Certainly 315, maybe 320 or 330? One of the car’s engineers refuses to say. But he’s smiling when I ask.
So, there you have it. If you live near the Autobahn, there’s no doubt: The new plug-in hybrid BMW M5 is an excellent and effortless way to go places in a hurry. If you live in Canada, however, you may rightly question whether a hulking 717-horsepower hybrid luxury limo is worth $135,000 when doing even half its top speed could see the car impounded.
Has the beloved BMW M5 – a pioneering high-speed luxury sedan that’s been around since 1984 – finally jumped the shark? Now in its seventh generation and for the first time as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), is it finally just too much? Too much power? Too much weight? Too much money? Too much complexity?
When you first slide into the generously sized driver’s seat, you’ll find 21 options in the car setup menu, including two for brake-pedal response, three for the all-wheel-drive system and two for engine noise. There are an additional five options for hybrid drive modes and three for driver-assists. (Still with me?) Drivers can mix and match most of these options to create two favourite drive modes made accessible through two red buttons on the steering wheel. There’s a precipitous learning curve, but once your two favourite modes are set, drivers can safely forget about most of these settings.
The interior has two displays, one is 12.3 inches and the other is 14.9 inches.Matt Bubbers/The Globe and Mail
When you first get in the new M5 there are 21 options in the car setup menu. Selecting the correct mix of settings is important for the drive.Matt Bubbers/The Globe and Mail
The complexity goes deeper, though. Under the hood is M Division’s familiar 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, only this time there’s an electric motor sandwiched between it and the eight-speed automatic gearbox. A 14.8-kilowatt-hour battery is mounted under the floor, granting 43 kilometres of electric driving range as rated by Natural Resources Canada.
Daniela Schmid, product manager for the new BMW M5, said the battery and motor weigh about 250 kilograms.
“To be able to offer this car in the future, in all different regions around the world, meeting the CO2 emissions standards while still increasing the performance of the car, it made us choose the hybrid drivetrain,” said Schmid.
But rather than downsize the V8 to a V6 to help compensate for the battery weight (as Ferrari did in its 296 GTB), BMW kept the V8. It’s a have-it-all sort of car, for better and for worse.
“We really think for the M5, the V8 is an asset,” Schmid said. “Our customers love the V8, they love the V8 sound.”
In other words, the new M5 had to have a V8 and it had to have a hybrid system. From that point, it was all about making it handle well and look good, neither of which is an easy task for a car this big and complex. The dizzying array of settings and systems all work to made this supersized sedan behave in a manner befitting the M5 badge. And it does, for the most part.
On highways at 120 kilometres an hour, the M5 can be quite civilized, assuming you’ve selected the correct mix of settings. The cabin is quiet and spacious.
On the winding backroads of Bavaria, the big car is freakishly competent. (Again, assuming you’ve chosen all the right settings.) In a car like this, you’d typically have a momentary delay between turning the steering wheel and the car scything into a corner, but there’s almost no delay. Rear-wheel steering works miracles, compensating for the added mass by allowing all four wheels to help turn the car. As a driver, you have to recalibrate your touch because this big car steers like a smaller one. It feels rather artificial but there’s no denying the effectiveness of all this technology.
The giant carbon-ceramic brakes reduce speed in a hurry, which is important when travelling on the speed-limitless German Autobahn.Matt Bubbers/The Globe and Mail
The car’s 2.4-tonne weight can still be felt when braking into corners. And the stiff springs – necessary to hold up all that weight – make themselves known going over bumps and ruts at city speeds, and even occasionally on the highway. There’s some compromise on ride comfort.
Assuming they enjoy the car’s new design, however, members of the M5′s core market should be happy with the all-new 2025 model. “It’s a lot of businessmen travelling long distances using the M5, definitely as their daily-driver car, but still loving the idea of being able to use it at the racetrack,” Schmid said. Although owners don’t typically take M5s to the track, she added. (For that, BMW has the M2, M3 and M4.) The plug-in M5 is relatively comfortable, spacious, monstrously powerful and, depending on where you live, may even grant the driver access to High-Occupancy Vehicle lanes.
Still, I can’t help but wonder if there might’ve been another way to achieve similar results, a less-is-more approach rather than this more-is-more M5. A lightweight carbon-composite bodyshell, a smaller V8 without turbos, less power, less weight, less complexity. Of course, it would’ve been prohibitively expensive and out of step with the car market’s bigger-is-better momentum. After all, Mercedes-AMG will soon launch its new E 63, perhaps also powered by a plug-in hybrid V8, and BMW wouldn’t want the M5 looking outgunned by its old rival. Welcome to the age of plug-in hybrid excess.
Tech specs
The new M5 has an electric range of 43 kilometres.Matt Bubbers/The Globe and Mail
2025 BMW M5 sedan
- Base price / as tested: $135,000 / $175,785
- Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, permanently excited synchronous electric motor
- Horsepower / torque (lb-ft): 717 / 738
- Transmission / drive: All-wheel drive / eight-speed automatic
- Fuel consumption (litres per 100 kilometres): 4.7 (electric plus gasoline, as rated by Natural Resources Canada), 10.9 observed
- Electric range: 43 kilometres
- Curb weight: 2,445 kilograms
- Alternatives: The upcoming M5 Touring, which is identical on paper but more practical and infinitely cooler because it’s a station wagon; BMW i5 M60, Lucid Air Grand Touring, Tesla Model S, outgoing Mercedes-AMG E 63 S or wait for the all-new model, Mercedes-AMG EQE, upcoming Audi A6 e-tron, Porsche Panamera 4S E-Hybrid
Looks
It’s a pumped-up BMW 5 Series. For the first time on an M5, it’s wider across the rear wheels, not only the fronts. Shame about the huge black-plastic front grille.
Interior
Spacious for four adults. Still way too much shiny black plastic. Carbon-fibre trim is extra.
Performance
Because it’s so heavy, it’s not any quicker than the old model going from zero to 100 kilometres an hour, taking 3.5 seconds. However, going from 80 to 120 kilometres an hour takes just 2.9 seconds, making it quicker than even the old M5 CS. Unlike Mercedes-AMG’s E Performance hybrids, the electric motor works through the engine’s gearbox, so you don’t get that instant hit of electric power. There’s a slight delay, unless you prime the M5′s powertrain by holding the left paddle for one second to engage “boost” mode. In EV mode, the M5 is relatively sluggish. The powertrain is essentially the same as in the BMW XM SUV.
Technology
There is Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but BMW’s infotainment looks good on the dual-screen (12.3-inch and a 14.9-inch) displays. The all-colour head-up display is huge. Level 2 advanced driver-assists are available.
Cargo
The hybrid battery is under the floor, so there’s a solid 466 litres of trunk space.
The verdict
A maximalist, sledgehammer of an M5 sedan for the plug-in hybrid era. But wait for the M5 Touring.
The writer was a guest of the automaker. Content was not subject to approval.
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