2025 BMW M5: What It’s Like to Drive a 2,400kg Rocket

Munich, Germany—For the 40th anniversary of the M5, and for the first time in BMW M history, the sedan and Touring (wagon) body styles are both launching at the same time. The former enters its seventh generation, with no interruptions between them, while the latter is just beginning its third. In a remarkable twist, the two cars will be sold in Canada, something that also hasn’t happened before.

The 2025 BMW M5 arrives in Canadian dealerships this November with a base price of $135,000, while the 2025 BMW M5 Touring is due in January starting at $138,000.

• Also: 2025 BMW M5 Gets 717 Hybrid Horsepower, Yet is Slower Than Before
• Also: It’s Official: New BMW M5 Touring is Coming to Canada

We’re reviewing the sedan here—you’ll have to wait until November 5 to read our impressions of the wagon. Of course, the two are very similar from a technical standpoint, so you should keep scrolling down even if you’re more interested in the long-roof variant of the M5.

The Elephant in the Room

Let’s address the elephant in the room first. The electrified, seventh-generation BMW M5 is incredibly heavy. At 2,435 kg, it weighs 470 kg more than its predecessor, and most of that weight comes from the new plug-in hybrid powertrain that is shared with the XM crossover.

The M5 generates 100 horsepower more than before—717 combined horsepower, to be exact—but you wouldn’t know it from the driver’s seat because it’s two tenths of a second slower from 0-100 km/h with a time of 3.5 seconds. It’s also half a second slower than the previous M5 CS.

Why a PHEV?

Just so you know, BWM did not consider any other type of powertrain for the new M5. That’s because the company has to comply with increasingly stringent emission standards and carbon taxes in several European countries. The ability to drive on pure battery power also means access to certain parts of major cities like downtown London. In order for a high-performance sedan like the M5 to survive, it had to take the PHEV route.

Thanks to an ultra-thin, 14.8kWh battery mounted under the floor, the M5 can drive up to 40-50 km in full electric mode at speeds up to 140 km/h. Yep, folks, it’s the beginning of a new era and we’d all better get used to it. Still, it’s mind-boggling to think that the original M5 tipped the scales at just 1,500 kg.

The centre of gravity happens to be the same height as before, but in order to cope with the additional mass, engineers have developed a four-wheel steering system where the rear wheels can turn 1.5 degrees. Furthermore, track width is increased by 75 mm in the front and 48 mm in the rear, resulting in a widebody design. The 20-inch front and 21-inch rear wheels are connected to an adaptive M suspension featuring double wishbones up front and a multi-link setup in the rear with traditional springs and electronically controlled dampers that adjust in real time. The suspension is pretty stiff not only to enhance handling but also to support all the weight.

Fast and Smooth

The M5 is fast, no doubt about that, and it sticks to the road quite well, especially when selecting a firmer calibration and activating the rear-biased AWD Sport mode. The car’s weight is mostly felt when braking or entering a corner. Despite the various efforts made by BMW M engineers, the new model is heavy and there’s no other way around it.

The ride felt relatively smooth on the slick roads and highways of Munich, but things could be much different in Canada where bad pavement is a regular occurrence. We’ll have to confirm that, of course, but we’re not very optimistic. Composite disc brakes come standard to ensure safe deceleration. That being said, you’d be wise to consider the optional carbon ceramic brakes.

Supremely Stable

Cruising at more than 250 km/h on the autobahn, the new M5 proved supremely stable and unflappable. That’s the beauty of driving on those German highways with long stretches that don’t have a speed limit. On the flip side, we recorded an average fuel consumption of 17.8 L/100 km even though we spent a fair amount of time driving around town in pure electric mode. By the way, EV operation is made sweeter to the ears thanks to a unique soundscape developed by renowned composer Hans Zimmer.

When the V8 kicks in, and the electronically controlled active sport exhaust system at the same time, a whole new dimension of fun and thrills opens up. Like we said before, the M5’s plug-in hybrid powertrain uses the same components as the XM’s, except with different tuning and a smaller-capacity battery. In normal daily driving, it shows great flexibility from low speeds to higher speeds.

Racy Looks

The expressive design of the 2025 BMW M5 starts with a striking and sculptural front fascia sporting large air intakes and illuminated Iconic Glow grille, the latter adding a handsome touch at night. The rear end is equally sporty with a prominent diffuser, quad tailpipes and subtle trunk lid spoiler in a black finish.

The interior of the M5 greets occupants with M sport seats featuring illuminated M logos, a carbon fibre dashboard and M-specific graphics on the dual screens making up the BMW Curved Display. The interface looks extremely sharp and navigation instructions—whether on the main screen or on the head-up display—are crystal clear. We do have one complaint to make: accessing the various menus of BMW’s latest infotainment system isn’t really intuitive.

M5 Touring Should Be Even Better

Our first-drive experience with the 2025 BMW M5 revealed a technical and technological tour de force. And with a base price of $135,000, this German sports sedan is pretty much a bargain given its impressive performance and content. Even better, Canadians will also have the ability to order the M5 Touring for the first time. Incidentally, don’t miss our review of that one in early November.