BMW M5 to Only Use Automatic Gearbox?

Before a new BMW M model is released, the news related to it should brings enthusiasts’ level of excitement sky-high and, so far, this has been the case with the upcoming F10 BMW M5. However, it seems that today we have a piece of disturbing information about the vehicle. The German automaker might offer the M5 with an automatic gearbox only, as Motor Trend reports.

Of course, you are going to ask why BMW isn’t fitting the M DCT (Dual Clutch Transmission) to the vehicle. The company has tried to adapt the gearbox to the twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 engine that will be found under the hood of the vehicle, but a feasible solution could not be found.

The torque generated by the engine was too high for the gearbox, which would have needed straightening. To be more precise the engineers could’ve installed bigger actuators. However, this would’ve lead to an increase in the response time.

The only way to make things work without compromising performance would’ve been a complete rework of the gearbox and BMW seems to have considered this as being too "expensive". Thus, the company decided to ditch the idea altogether and fit the vehicle with the ZF 8-speed automatic transmission.

The gearbox will offer a sequential mode with paddle shifters allowing the driver to feel like he’s in charge, but this won’t even come close to what fans expect from the car. This setup might be just right for the X5 M and X6 M, but we have to remember that we are talking about the M5 here...