The old versus new comparisons influenced the auto industry since day 1. Even the earliest models ever conceived were compared to the successors in order to see exactly how far things have gone from a technical point of view, pushing the boundaries of advancements to ever higher levels.
With the F10 M5 BMW made a clear statement and lobbied for a new kind of mobility, one based on efficiency and performance at the same time. Using naturally aspirated engines was no longer acceptable, not in the strained and resource depleted world of today.
Therefore they replaced the brilliant S85 5-liter V10 engine from the E60 M5 with a new S63 4.4-liter V8 unit with two turbochargers and a lot more power. Compared to its predecessor, the new model had around 60 more horsepower and 160 Nm of torque extra to play around with.
The one thing a lot of people complained about when they started driving the contemporary M5 was the engine sound. Coming to fill the shoes the Formula 1 inspired V10 engine, the new V8 didn’t rise to the expectations.
Few things can be done to improve the exhaust note and make it either more aggressive or meaner but in the end, you’d really have to love the famous ‘turbo whine’ to be able to love it.
When set up against each other, the two M5s show exactly what BMW wanted them to. The newer model with its extra grunt and double-clutch 7-speed gearbox is better in every way compared to the old E60 version and the differences are striking, to say the least. However, some might prefer the creation of Mr. Bangle due to other reasons, excluding straight up performance. To each his own!
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