► 2024’s new BMW M5 to electrify
► PHEV powertrain puts out 650+bhp
► Includes Touring estate model
BMW is already amping up for the next-generation M5, codenamed G90. Arriving in 2024, this new high-performance executive car will represent a dramatic change from the current F90.
Why? Because it’s expected to be the first M car to be exclusively electrified, using the same brawny 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 plus 25.7kWh battery and e-motor combination as the XM. Not only that, but BMW has announced that, as well as a saloon model, the Touring estate makes a return (pictured below) for the first time since the E61 M5 Touring that launched in 2007.
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Our spies have captured the latest M5 prototypes testing around the Nordschleife test circuit in Germany, as BMW engineers hone the hybrid powertrain, cooling and chassis systems to cope with the added complexity – and weight – that going hybrid inevitably brings. On top of that, BMW has even released a few images of its new M5 Touring.
New 2024 BMW M5: the G90 hotshot
The 5-series range-topper, coded G90 in saloon and G99 in Touring form (the new 5-series is codenamed G60, for reference) musters 653bhp, sources say. And there may be even more to come, like the M5 CS version destined to share its 750bhp drivetrain with the Label Red version of the XM SUV.
We’re promised an improved version of all-wheel steering, active anti-roll bars with automatic ride-height control and more powerful brakes, interacting with the various electronic systems to recycle surplus energy.
The new M5 will most likely again offer a choice of steering and braking calibrations in addition to the usual list of dynamic adjustment opportunities. Our spies have nosed around briefly inside the new G90 BMW M5 (see above).
What happened to an electric M5?
Theoretically, BMW could extend its parallel-universe all-electric powertrain to the M models. After all, the 650bhp BMW i7 M70 xDrive was unveiled in April 2023, and its scalable powertrain could be shoehorned into the G60 matrix without much hassle. In the bigger 7-series bodyshell, it scampers silently from 0-62mph in 3.7sec.
That’s the smart thing about Munich’s current open-technology approach: you can go all-in when the time is right, you can hang on a bit longer with more conservative options, or mix and match until legislation intervenes or the rate of electric adoption changes.
When will the new BMW M5 launch?
It’s expected to be revealed in 2024, after the new G60-generation BMW 5-series goes on sale.