No matter whether you are four-wheeled, two-wheeled, or even three-wheeled minded, enthusiasts share similar thoughts when it comes to bucket-list drives around the world.
Sitting pretty high on this list for most would be crossing the Alps between Italy and Germany, as not only are the views breathtaking, but the roads are both challenging and rewarding. When taking on an epic drive like this, it deserves an epic car, and we were lucky enough to get behind the wheel of BMW’s very exclusive M5 CS.
Though BMW New Zealand stated that orders were open back when the M5 CS was first announced, it’s still unclear if any actually landed locally. Add in the fact that it sold out in Australia within 72 hours with a $270,000 price tag attached, and you start to get a feel for the magnitude of this car.
Like the CS models that came before it, the M5 works with the tried and true recipe of removing weight, and adding power. In CS form, the twin-turbo 4.4-litre V8 was tuned to pump out an extra 7kW bringing peak figures to 467kW and 750Nm. Through the generous use of carbon fibre, 70kg was dropped over an M5 Competition, meaning that it now tips the scales at just over 1.8-tonnes.
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As you can imagine, losing weight and adding power to a car that’s already a road-going rocket only made things even wilder, as this CS will hit 100km/h from a standing start in just 3 seconds flat before topping out at 305km/h.
Not too long ago, that sort of performance was exclusively reserved for supercars, and not full-sized family-friendly sedans. On that topic, the CS is exclusively available in a four-seat configuration, as the rear row consists of a pair of bucket seats that not only look fantastic, but compliment the hardcore carbon-clad buckets up front nicely.
On the road, this M5 CS is nothing short of a modern marvel. But before we dive into what makes this car a good performance car, I want to talk about one element that makes it a great performance car; also being a regular 5 Series.
If the ‘M’ buttons are left alone, and everything stays in comfort mode, you’d have a hard time picking the CS from a regular 5-Series on a road trip. The ride is extremely supple, the road noise is almost non-existent, and the power train is smooth as butter. With a car as comfortable as this, you’d almost forget why you spent over $270K on a 5 Series; but that's before you dive into the drive modes.
Like M5s that have come before it, this CS turns into a different animal entirely once the M buttons are configured. The suspension sharpens up, the engine growls ferociously, and the automatic transmission manages to mimic a dual-clutch unit with how sharp the shifts get.
Even though the M5 CS is exclusively available with an all-wheel drive system, this doesn’t mean that it can’t be the rear-drive M car when you want it to. Pressing the DSC button enables the ‘M Dynamic Mode’ traction system which sends a decent about of torque to the rear wheels for some oversteering fun. If this still isn’t enough, there’s also a 2WD drive mode which will send all 750Nm through the rear wheels, but you’re going to need some very fast hands for this.
Despite its size, the M5 CS felt extremely agile over the Stelvio Pass. If you’ve ever crossed this pass, you’ll be aware of the tricky 1st gear hairpins that can bog down even the most agile performance cars. Even though the CS needed to be chopped right down to get out of these corners in boost, the low torque surge means that the V8 avoids this painful bog. The CS really came into its own was through the flowing turns further down the pass, where the V8 could really stretch its legs. With incredibly accurate steering and a predictable chassis on the limit, it’s hard to wipe the smile off your face whilst pushing it through the turns.
Though the smell of brakes was very much in the air by the time we hit the bottom of the pass, the CS is offered as standard with Carbon Ceramics, so we had full faith in these stoppers.
At its heart, the M5 has always been a high-speed cruiser, and I’d argue that this is where the CS is most at home. A section of de-restricted Autobahn was all we needed to find out that it would hit 300km/h in comfort mode without breaking a sweat. Though we didn’t quite get to its 305km/h top speed, it felt incredibly planted, and would likely do it all day – if you can afford the fuel bill that is.
As a whole, this M5 CS feels like a very special car; something that pushes the boundaries of what a full-sized sedan can do. In a mythological world where choosing between M cars was a reality for me, I’d probably go for this M5 CS over an M3 or M4 – an opinion that I never thought I’d hold.
BMW M5 CS
ENGINE: 4.4-litre turbo-petrol V8
POWER: 467kW/750Nm
GEARBOX: 8-speed automatic transmission, AWD
0-100KM/H: 3.0 seconds
CONSUMPTION: 11.1L/100km, CO2 252g/km
PRICE: $270,000