Just picked up a new M5 last week as my new daily driver (No it doesn't replace my 997) and after almost 300 miles i thought I'd offer a few comments. First, I haven't used the power button yet which adds another 100 HP to the car but even without it the car has a decent amount of power. It's not as pure of a sports car as my 997 but for a four door sedan it is very capable. I am waiting to finish break-in before I mash the accelerator and see what she really has under the hood. I have the SMG tranny on it which is something I'm still trying to get used to. It seems to work better when I manually shift as opposed to letting it shift. The I drive is a bit complex but I'm coming around to it, particularly the bluetooth interface to my cell phone which enables hands free phone calling. Handling is very crisp and precise similar to the 997 but you can tell that your driving a much heavier vehicle. The brakes are fantastic and I think they are even better than my 997. Seats are comfortable and have a million possible positions. They are comfortable but I'm still up in the air as to whether there as good as the 997. We'll see how the next 1200 break-in miles go and I'll put it through some other trials and have some other feedback.

Just thought I'd share these thoughts on another powerful sports sedan.

 

Thanks for the review!

 

Thanks for the insight on the M5. I considered an '08 M5 before I bought my 911 S for about the same price. It was a hard decision considering that about everything else in the ~ $100K price range makes a lot more power than the 911, including several 500+ HP cars like the M5. One problem that I had with the M5 (other than that it weighs over 2 tons) is that it looks almost exactly like other 5 series BMWs costing half as much. Nothing else looks like a 911. The M5 sure makes great sounds at full throttle though. One blew past me on the highway not long ago. Good luck keeping the RPMs down for the next 1200 miles!

 

Very nice car.. see my sig (lol). There is something about having a 2+t car accelerate at WOT the way it does.
The SMG box needs to be "learned". In auto mode it is slow and jerky.. not comfortable at all. I used to shift manually, crank the box to level 5. Best way was to treat the go pedal like you would a regular car. As you shift, just ease off the gas a bit and then re-accelerate. A bit of practice and it will be fine.

My biggest beef with the car is that it has a very small gas tank and in town I got about 10mpg. So I felt like I was always at a gas station filling up.

Good luck with her.. they are really well built cars!

 

Hi, we have an 07, and it's been used a lot, first off, brakes are not very good at all on track, they fade, even with good fluid. porsche brakes are in general very very good, bmw are not.

you really need to test the powerbutton, it's SO much more fun just hit the M and rev it, it doesn't really wake up until you go past 6000revs with power button on, it's a must

here is some video footage from track, it's a sideways monster!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2c28UXN7uc

on winter it's even more fun, just grab a set of dubbed tires and go nuts, sooo much power and handeling, it's the perfect wintercar!

we also have a 997TT with some upgrades... totally different car when changeing from one to another.

hopefully the m5 will get a hitch soon so I can use it to tow my 951! awaiting price quote from dealer, I know another guy here uses his for towing his trackcar as well, so should be possible.

 

How's the gas mileage?

I almost bought a slightly used M5 a couple of months ago. I went with the new M3 sedan as a daily driver instead, power is identical (M3 has less but weighs less) and the M3 had much better handling and gas mileage. The M5 is still a great choice!!!!

 

I've been curious about the M5 since the '06s seem to really be good buys. Thanks for the initial impressions - keep the reviews coming.

 

great car, bad milage. new DSG will make it more comfy as well.

 

For a new daily driver I "interviewed" the M3,M5, C63, and Lexus ISF. I did not like the M3, in addition to them being quite common. All of the other three are very potent hi-po sedans. The M5 was quite a car, but I went with the ISF, and am not disapointed. Can't go wrong with any of the 3 as a "fillin" for your Porsche.

 

I had the previous gen M5. Great car. Fast and relaxing at the same time. Nonetheless, I missed having a car that felt like a sports car, so off it went, and I back to Porsche. Would be nice to have both, but have a Cayenne instead.

 

oh, check out www.m5board.com

 

+1 to nathan and Andre I am a long time BMW fan, and have had several "M" cars My two biggest beefs with the M5, were a) it looks almost EXACTLY like all other 5 series, and b) mama mia, such crappy gas mileage that said, I would not throw one out of bed

 

another great place, great people too !!
http://www.e60.net/

 

Yeah, the one thing that is a downer is the gas milage - about 10 - 11 MPG and the gas tank is on the small side. Although it does look alot like the general 5 series I kinda like the understated lines. Overall, it's fun to drive - i'm still waiting for the power button to be used - once that happens I'll report back with the 500HP report....

 

after 3 years...fit and finish excellent; engine awesome, handling OK not sporting enough for me -- too much a muscle car. Electronics software - quirky. SMG transmission - awful! - just awful.
cheers,