A new F90 BMW M5 prototype was spotted last week near the Nurburgring giving us a closer look at its interior design, along with the exhaust note and acceleration sound. The spy video reveals the new 8-speed automatic transmission shifter which looks closely in design to the one seen in the Concept 8 Series. Other interior details reveal a red push start button, exhaust flap button, M1 and M2 buttons, and carbon fiber trim.
The F90 M5 was recently previewed by BMW when it allowed several journalists to take it for a ride around the Miramas track, BMW’s secret testing facility in France. The new F90 M5 is packing a variant of the same S63 4.4 liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine. In this new M5, it makes “around” 600 hp, though BMW was a bit mum on the exact details. Though it puts it right there with the Audi RS6 Performance and the Mercedes-AMG E63 S. It also packs 516 lb-ft of torque, which is up a bit from the previous car.
Also for the first time, the M5 sporty sedan will be available with an M xDrive all-wheel configuration. The M xDrive system enables the rear-biased set-up by only bringing the front wheels into play when the rear wheels aren’t able to transmit any more power to the road and additional tractive force is required. The driver can choose from five different configurations based on combinations of the DSC modes (DSC on, MDM, DSC off) and M xDrive modes (4WD, 4WD Sport, 2WD).
The rear differential is based off the one in the M3 and M4, but it receives carbon clutch blades for quicker and more precise torque vectoring.
We’ve also previously learned that the new F90 M5 can get from 0-60 mph in under 3.5 seconds, which makes it the fastest accelerating BMW ever made.
We expect to see the fully unveiled F90 M5 this Summer, followed by a public introduction at the 2017 Frankfurt Auto Show.
