Through the endless string of turns, the M5's chassis was, if anything, even more impressive than the engine: Despite its 3800-pound weight, this four-door sedan responds precisely to steering-wheel movements, drifts slightly under the control of the driver's right foot, and accelerates vigorously onto the next straight. And when the next bend approaches, the ventilated and cross-drilled compound brake discs absorb the most extreme loads without protest, together with the Dynamic Stability Control system that has settings specifically calibrated for M5 duty.
If there's one feature of this car that seems to make the Nordschleife's 179 corners almost child's play, it's the seven-speed SMG Drivelogic gearbox. There's no clutch pedal, and ratios are selected by flicking paddles behind the steering wheel. The intelligent engine-management system keeps the V-10 engine turning over in its ideal powerband, and the double-declutching effect during downshifts, as the engine revs up between gears, has you sounding as sharp and as fast as Juan-Pablo Montoya into turns.
BMW's acoustics engineers have done the new M5 proud: The V-10 roars and snarls when you accelerate, burbles, and clears its throat on the overrun--and even attracts attention when it's idling. The secret of this sound is not only the 10-cylinder firing order, but also plenty of fine tuning work on the four-pipe exhaust system.
From the passenger's seat, at least, BMW appears to have achieved a fascinating blend of shattering, F1-inspired performance, and day-to-day useability with the new M5. Burkhard Goeschel is especially proud the M5 is so easy to drive. "It forgives errors on the driver's part, yet can give him more than he could demand of it in a lifetime." The line forms here.