Description
Author: James Taylor, Hardbound, 176 Pages, ISBN: 9781785000454
1st Edition, 2015
The M5 was the car that really initiated the legend of the M-cars from BMW. The letter M had been applied to a high-performance BMW as early as 1978, but that year's M1 was an exotic supercar. It had the right image, but the M1 was never going to bring in major profits.
The M5 was much simpler in concept. It was and remains a production 5 Series saloon, redeveloped for ultra-high performance by the Motorsport division. Manufacturing costs were minimized, allowing BMW to price the car more attractively and still bring in healthy profits.
The company tested the water gingerly from 1980 with re-worked versions of its mid-range saloons, so when the first-generation E28-based M5 was announced in late 1984, BMW knew how to achieve its aims. With a version of the Motorsport engine developed for the Ml, the M5 was a huge success — even in the USA, where safety and emissions equipment demanded performance-sapping changes.
That six-cylinder engine needed only a small change of capacity to keep it ahead of potential rivals when the 5 Series became an E34, and an M5 version of that was released in 1988. But by 1990, other makers were moving to take a slice of the MS's market. A mid-life capacity increase for the M5's engine kept the model in the limelight, and a Touring (estate) body option gave it an additional edge.
By the time of the next M5 in 1998, global demand for the M5 was such that assembly could no longer be accommodated within the Motorsport division and so the E39 model and its successors were designed to be built on the main assembly lines. BMW had moved to a V8 engine for its top models, and the E39 M5 had a Motorsport-developed version of this. Keeping one step ahead all the time, BMW developed the replacement E60 model of 2004 around a V10
engine, which confirmed the M5's reputation as a complex car with formidable road performance.
As the global trend in the car industry moved towards smaller and more efficient engines, the 2011 F10 model of the M5 came with a V8 of smaller capacity than before — but with class-leading performance assured this time through twin turbochargers. Still in production as this book went to press, it remains the benchmark high-performance saloon wherever it is sold.
For all fans of the BMW M5, this book provides essential background. It is packed with the facts and details that make the M5 legend come alive.
James Taylor has been writing professionally about cars since the late 1970s, and his interests embrace a wide range of older cars of all makes and nationalities, as well as classic buses, lorries and military vehicles. However, he also enjoys keeping abreast of current special-interest models such as the BMW M5 because, he believes, today's interesting cars are tomorrow's classics. This book is a companion to his recent Crowood publication, BMW M3 —The Complete Story.
James has written well over 100 books, and among them have been several definitive one-make or one-model titles, including a number for Crowood. He has also written for enthusiast magazines in several countries, has translated books from foreign languages, and delivers effective writing training in both the public and private sectors.
