At the present moment, the M3 is offered in three levels of power: the standard tune, the Competition spec, and no-nonsense CS. The one featured in the video below is an M3 Competition, which pumps out a remarkable 503 ponies from a 3.0-liter I6 with two mono-scroll turbochargers.
S58 is how BMW refers to said engine, which is derived from the B58 of the M340i. Both the S58 and B58 develop more power and torque than officially advertised. Speaking of which, BMW quotes 479 pound-feet (650 Nm) at full chatter.
The car next to the compact executive sedan is the M5 Competition, which slots right between the M5 and M5 CS. It makes 617 horsepower and 553 pound-feet (750 Nm) from a displacement of 4.4 liters and eight cylinders arranged in a V shape, and – obviously enough – it sports M xDrive.
M xDrive is BMW's way of saying all-wheel drive with selectable rear-wheel drive, a system that – as implied by the M in M xDrive – is exclusive to M vehicles. The M5 Competition is quite a bit heavier than the M5 Competition, whereas the more compact sedan weighs 1,805 kilograms (3,979 pounds). The next-generation M5 has been confirmed with hybrid muscle, meaning that more than two metric tons are in the offing, but more on that later.
In the first race, the G80 launches worse and covers the quarter mile in more time than the F90, yet clocks a higher speed over the finish line as well. The numbers are 4.0 and 3.8 seconds, 11.68 and 11.56 seconds, and 203.43 versus 200.56 kilometers per hour (126.40 versus 124.62 miles per hour).
They're much closer in the second race, with both the M3 Competition and M5 Competition recording 11.58 seconds in the quarter mile. But alas, the M5 Competition proved to be quicker off the line, clocking 3.5 seconds compared to 3.6 for the smaller sedan. Without launch control, that is.
The first of two rolls starts rather poorly for the M5 Competition, whose driver appears to be dreaming about the M5 CS or next-generation model. But fortunately, he's more focused in the second rolling start race, which concludes with a dominant victory for the punchier yet heavier M5 Competition.
Scheduled to launch next year, the M5 will switch to the G90 codename for the four-door sedan. The big surprise isn't hybrid assistance, though. It's that BMW could make a case for a wagon, the first M5 Touring since the V10-engined E61. As a brief refresher, a little over 1k units of the E61 were produced as opposed to nearly 20k for the E60.
The hybrid-assisted V8 powertrain of the G90 and G99 is believed to be closely related to the XM's powertrain, which develops 644 horsepower and 590 pound-feet (800 Nm). Level up to the XM Label Red, and the output also improves to a colossal 738 horsepower and 738 pound-feet (1,000 Nm).
The G80 and G81 will be – reportedly – axed in 2027. By then, chances are that the S58 inline-six engine of the M3 will receive an element of hybridization as well. This may also be the fate of the M2 because Euro 7 regulations will require every single automaker present in the Old Continent to improve their fleet-average CO2 emissions. Otherwise, massive fines will be levied on automakers that don't comply.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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