3 Things I Like About the BMW M5 and 3 Things I Don’t

Every new generation of M5 tends to bother car enthusiasts in some way or another. The last one was the first to get all-wheel drive, a move that some likened to BMW selling its soul to the devil. But it ended up being better than it was before in nearly every objective metric.

The 2025 BMW M5 gets all-wheel drive again, but it’s also a plug-in hybrid for the first time ever, and the complexity and weight of the vehicle have gone through the roof. Memes comparing it to a dump truck and other heavy objects were quick to follow. But, as usual, the engineers in Munich managed to turn the 2,510-kg M5 into a continent-crushing super sedan, equally at home on the race track or doing 300 km/h on the Autobahn. If measured just by its performance, this is the best M5 yet and it’s got some neat tricks up its sleeve. But it’s also the most complicated. Doing it all isn’t easy.

Here are three things I love about the new M5, and three things that bother me about BMW’s super sedan.

Good: Uncannily Agile with Elemental Power

Now that most of the weight jokes and rumours about the M5 driving like a truck are out of the way, what’s it actually like to drive? Well, it’s incredibly powerful and has handling that belies its mass, but it’s still an excellent luxury sedan with all the creature comforts one expects of it. That’s exactly what it’s been since it was introduced in 1986.

The 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 is aided by a 145-kW electric motor integrated into the eight-speed automatic transmission. With a combined output of 717 hp, the M5 can blur the scenery in front of you at a moment’s notice. The electric motor facilitates instantaneous throttle response and a chunky power bump, while the big V8 provides gobs of thrust. It’s an enormously effective combination.

All that power would mean little if the M5 couldn’t handle it, but the agility of this big sedan is scarcely believable. The company said it worked particularly hard on the front end of the car so it would behave correctly, and the results are impressive.

Good: The Electric Mode is Awesome

You can configure the M5 to start in electric mode, provided there’s enough juice in the 14.8-kWh battery. It can be plugged into any Level 2 charger, and it takes about three hours to fully charge, which gives you about 40 km of range. The electric motor puts out 196 hp, which doesn’t sound like a lot for an M5, but it feels quick, and it can still do 140 km/h in complete silence and without burning a single drop of fuel. The EV mode is perfect for running errands around town in your family-friendly super sedan.

Good: Gorgeous Interior

The M5 and 5 Series get the best interior elements from the 7 Series, like the striking “interaction” light bar that bisects the dashboard and flows into the doors. It looks like a crystalline matrix, and it glows and pulses with the colour of the M flag when you first get in before fading into whatever colour you’ve chosen through the infotainment screen. It’s a new take on ambient lighting and looks very slick.

My tester had swaths of glossy carbon fibre trim on the dash and two-tone leather on the doors and the seats. I think they’re the best seats available in any car today. They envelop you like a warm hug but still hold you in place at race track speeds. There are also hidden air vents and a powered rear sunshade, and rear seat passengers get ample room to stretch out.

Bad: Too Many Drive Mode Settings

Like the other new M cars today, there aren’t any typical drive modes. Instead, you have the setup screen where you can play with eight different driving parameters, from the drivetrain to the brakes, and even the all-wheel-drive system. On top of that are five additional modes for the hybrid drive system, and you can use any combination of these to fine-tune your individual experience. You can program two of your favourite setups into the red M1 and M2 buttons on the steering wheel, but it’s a dizzying array of combinations you could choose from. If you’re indecisive, you should steer clear of the setup screen and just drive the M5 in its default mode the entire time.

Bad: Not as Comfortable as it Was Before

I’m not sure if it’s the extra weight or just how BMW has tuned the M5’s suspension to help it defy physics, but it has lost some of the ride suppleness it had in previous generations. Engineers typically employ stiffer dampers and springs to deal with increased weight, and that might be the case here. Don’t get me wrong, the M5 still has a refined and controlled ride, but just be prepared to deal with harsher impacts than you’d expect from this type of vehicle.

Bad: Just Give Me Some Buttons, Please

Slowly but surely, BMW has conceded to the altar of capacitive touch and removed nearly all physical buttons. Mercifully, there’s a volume wheel on the centre console, and the haptic feedback-style buttons around the gear selector are better than most. I do find myself having to reach back to push some of them, though, and moving all the climate controls to the touchscreen may lend a cleaner appearance, but the ergonomics and ease of use suffer greatly.