2025 BMW M5 G90: Quickest BMW Ever Coming With More Power, More Weight, and Less Sound

Because the automotive world has been changing at such a rapid pace in recent years, we were almost denied a seventh generation of the mighty M5 nameplate. Still, BMW's M division decided to take a gamble and introduce one anyway.

Since the current M5 F90 is arguably the best M5 ever, especially in its CS iteration, the next generation has some gigantic shoes to fill. Especially since it must do that while massively upgrading its green credentials.

Going Hybrid as a Prerequisite

In case it wasn't clear by now, the 2025 BMW M5 G90 will be the first hybrid M sedan in the company's history, a necessary technical solution to keep the model "marketable" in this day and age.

With lessons learned from the controversial BMW XM, the engineers from M GmbH are working on a similar approach for BMW's next super sedan.

Because the standard BMW XM isn't much more powerful than the current M5 CS, the seventh-generation BMW M5 will share its powertrain with the XM Label Red.

The limited-edition SUV features a twin-turbocharged, 4.4-liter V8 that delivers a healthy 577 HP (585 PS) and a 194 HP (197 Ps) electric motor housed inside the 8-speed automatic transmission from ZF.

The combined output is a respectable 738 HP (748 PS) and 738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque, more than enough to propel the colossal SUV from 0 to 62 mph (100 kph) in under 4 seconds.

You can expect the M5 G90 with the same powertrain to drop its 0-62 mph time around the three-second range, making it the quickest accelerating production M5 in history.

Massive Power, Massive Weight

In the XM, the electric motor takes its electron juice from a 29.5 kWh (gross) lithium-ion battery and can power the car on its own for up to 51 miles (82 km) WLTP with a top speed of 87 mph (140 kph).

That electric range is all fine and dandy but comes with the price of massive weight, as the XM Label Red weighs almost as much as three Mazda MX-5s. At least 6,173 pounds (2,800 Kg) are quoted for the hybrid SUV, which doesn't bring good news for the next M5.

To put things into context, thanks to the intensive use of CFRP (Carbon fiber-Reinforced Plastics), the current BMW M5 CS weighs just under just 4,189 pounds (1,900 kg), so you can expect the hybrid model to accumulate at least 900 pounds (400 kg) more than that when it arrives in 2024.

That weight increase is only a speculation, but it's also optimistic, as we're talking about adding an electric motor and a massive battery to the package. On top of it, the recently unveiled 5 Series G60 is already heavier than the 'old' M5 CS in its 2.0-liter diesel iteration.

Handling Won't Disappoint, but Sound Will

Despite the gigantic weight penalty, handling should embody the spirit of the iconic M brand, so you should prepare for a symphony of power and precision.

Previewed on the XM, the next-generation M5's handling will be controlled by 48-volt active anti-roll bars combined with steel springs, adaptive dampers, and rear-wheel-steering for the first time on an M5.

Like the current model, power will go as standard to all four wheels via an M-tuned xDrive arrangement that can decouple the front axle either wholly or partially thanks to a multi-clutch system.

Sadly, the V8 soundtrack will go the way of the dodo almost completely, instead being augmented by a Hans Zimmer-composed blend of sounds in hybrid and electric driving modes.

Spy videos of a pre-production prototype leave little to the imagination regarding exhaust sound, with the model sounding more like a Dyson product.

Will It Be Pretty?

From the moment you set eyes on any generation of the BMW M5, its presence is palpable. The design is a marriage of elegance and aggression, with sculpted lines that evoke a sense of purpose.

The wider track and bolder stance hint at the performance that lies within, while subtle aerodynamic enhancements enhance both form and function. The BMW M5 has almost always been the epitome of understated beauty, oozing confidence without resorting to ostentation.

Since it will be based on the new 5 Series G60, you can expect its design to be the most polarizing M5 ever, but you should reserve your final judgment until more revealing spy photos of the model appear.

What can be known for sure is that the front and rear bumpers will be way more aggressive, and the model will be much wider than the awkward-looking 5 Series G60. Four oversized exhaust tips and a rear diffuser are also a given.

BMW M5 Touring Comeback Officially Confirmed

It would be remiss not to mention the M5 G90's illustrious lineage. Over the years, two of the many special editions have stood out more than others for a specific type of people.

I'm talking about the elusive station wagon version of the M5, which was only available on the second generation, the E34, and the fourth one, the E61.

As it happens, BMW has just officially confirmed that there will be an M5 Touring again, set to be unveiled in the second half of 2024.

The enormous success of the M3 Touring has definitely turned some wheels at M GmbH, and BMW has already started public testing the 2025 M5 Touring, which is set to wear the G99 internal moniker.

Sadly, the 2025 BMW M5 Touring will not only be the quickest ever BMW station wagon in a straight line, but it will also be the heaviest, with its total mass expected to revolve around the 5,300 pounds (2,400 kg) mark, if not more.

A lighter and possibly more powerful version wearing the "CS" moniker of the M5 sedan should arrive later as a proper swan song of the ICE-powered nameplate. Allegedly, the 'standard' M5 G90's launch window has been set for July 2024, almost four decades after the first generation started production.

What I find even more interesting is that the electric-only i5 is also bound to get a full-blown M version, with BMW testing a quad-motor prototype in 2022, but more on that later.

With that in mind, the 2025 BMW M5 will culminate decades of Motorsport GmbH heritage, so it should be a worthy successor to the legendary M5s that have come before.