A Brief History Of The BMW M5 Wagon Before The New One Arrives

In late 1991, the 3.8-liter S38B38 updated engine arrived with 335 hp and a 0-60 time of 5.9 seconds. In 1992, a lefthand-drive M5 Touring was introduced. This was BMW's last hand-built M car. Some 891 units were made, a tiny portion of the 12,254 E34 M5s made altogether, so if you get the opportunity to somehow own one, do not hesitate. A six-speed Getrag manual was introduced in 1994.

Sadly, America's M5 (1991-1993) was only available as a sedan, despite the fact that the regular 5 Series wagon was already sold here. Worse still, the US-spec (and South African-spec) E39 M5 was only available with the smaller 3.5-liter engine because of emissions.

Think a 3.8-liter wagon would be bad for your carbon footprint? BMW once stuffed the engine from the McLaren F1into an E34 M5 wagon one-off. Just imagine the noise of that V12 howling in competition with the screams of your frightened kids.

Yes, BMW considered building an M5 wagon on the bones of the E39 sedan. In fact,things went as far as a full prototype, which was finished in Titanium Silver over a Black Exclusive leather interior. Unfortunately, financial considerations prevented its viability. More disappointingly is that BMW kept this piece of forbidden fruit secret for many years. More than a decade ago, however, a few journalists were allowed into BMW's inner lair and found loads more than just the one-off E39 M5 Touring, as reported byBMW Blog. German publications got to see the car even sooner -BimmerTodaycaptured the most comprehensive gallery of the E39 M5 wagon to date in 2009. Not even BMW's press archives have images of this one.

To this day, BMW has remained tight-lipped on the prototype, but it would have been something special. It might have sold well, too, considering how many enthusiasts these days continue to bemoan its failure to launch. Still, several heroes among us havemade their dreams a realityby blending E39 wagons with the powertrains of M5 sedans.

The regular E39 M5 sedan (1998-2003) featured a 4.9-liter S62 V8 engine (also found in thebreathtakingly gorgeous Z8 Roadster) generating 394 hp at 6,600 rpm and 369 lb-ft at 3,800 rpm. A six-speed manual sent power to the rear wheels via a limited-slip differential, allowing for a 0-60 mph time of 4.9 seconds. Top speed was 161 mph, a smidge higher than the E34. 20,482 were made, and today, many consider this the finest M5 ever made, a near-perfect blend of performance, style, luxury, and refinement.

By the time 2004 rolled around, BMW had developed the need to differentiate chassis codes. Thus, the E60 5 Series was the sedan and the E61 signified the wagon. But nobody remembers that or even cares, frankly. The only thing that was burned into the collective consciousness at the time was that BMW had put a massive shrieking 5.0-literV10 engineinspired by its F1 exploits into an executive sedan. If that wasn't enough, an F1-style paddle-shift gearbox was fitted. The SMG-III seven-speed single-clutch automated manual could perform shifts in as little as 65 milliseconds, the doors were soft-close, and a color head-up display was fitted. Many of the E6X's electronics would later prove to be troublesome, and the gearbox was rougher than any conventional automatic at low speeds, but this was the early 2000s. We survived Y2K and now expected our cars to show human mastery of technology too. BMW obliged, and the result was the E60 M5 (2004-2010).

The S85 engine produced 500 hp at 7,750 rpm and 384 lb-ft of torque at 6,100 rpm, enough for 0-62 mph to be clocked in 4.7 seconds (0-60 would have been in the mid to low four-second range). This was also around the time that BMW became a little sneakier about its true potential, and many independent tests confirmed that the M5 was almost a second quicker than claimed. The top speed was 155 mph unless you opted for the M Driver's Package, which unlocked 190 mph. Remove the limiter altogether, and you could hit 205, making it the fastest sedan on the planet once again and claiming the title of the fastest wagon in the world along the way.

但是从我们,马车再次扣留1 025 units being sold only in Europe. This is despite the fact that, during its five-year, 20,589-unit production run, the US was the biggest M5 market with 8,800 cars.

On the plus side, we got a six-speed manual transmission as a no-cost option in October 2006, the only market to do so.

Theall-new BMW 5 Series, known by the designation G60, will soon spawn an M variant that will be called G90 in sedan form and G99 in wagon form. Details remain hazy at the time of publication, but we know that an electrified powertrain will motivate the car. That powertrain is expected to be the same 4.4-liter twin-turbocharged V8 hybrid system from theXM Label Red SUV, which produces 738 hp. We hope BMW boosts the M5 to 750 just so that we don't have to think about the XM when referring to the M division's most powerful product, but even without a headline-stealing figure, we expect the latest BMW M5 to continue a fine tradition: being the most agile, quickest, and practical sports sedan (and wagon) in its class. All we ask is that we can have the wagon on American shores. Thankfully, our prayersmay already have been answered.