The BMW M5 Competition Is Even Faster and More Badass
Say goodbye to the Competition package and say hello to the Competition; the popular optional bundles for BMW’s M cars have become their own model now. This change starts with the 2019 M5 Competition, which will be available this summer and adds an extra scoop of power and sportiness to the already highly capable regular model. The Competition model will cost $110,995, a $7400 increase over the base price of the standard 2018 M5.
The twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V-8 engine gets a small bump from the base M5’s 600 horsepower to 617. The power peak also changes, from 5700 to 6600 rpm in the lesser car to exactly 6000 rpm in the Competition. Maximum torque remains at 553 lb-ft and is available from 1800 rpm all the way until 5860 rpm, an increase of 160 revs at the high end. The result, BMW says, is a zero-to-60-mph time that drops by 0.1 second to 3.1 seconds; however, the regular car hit 60 mph in a shocking 2.8 seconds in our testing, so BMW’s time is likely very conservative.
The M5 Competition also is even louder than the standard M5 thanks to special tuning for the sport exhaust, especially in its Sport Plus mode. The Competition, which weighs the same as the regular M5 according to BMW, carries over the standard xDrive all-wheel-drive system and eight-speed automatic transmission.
The chassis receives modifications, too. The suspension is lower by 0.3 inch, there’s more front camber, the tuning of the springs and dampers has been tweaked, and the rear anti-roll bar is stiffer. Rubber bushings in the rear are replaced by solid ball joints, and the engine mounts are firmer as well. All of this should lead to even more precise, direct, and aggressive handling-as if the M5 needed it. We’ll take it, though.
To make sure the changes don’t go unnoticed by your neighbors or at the stoplight, the Comp car’s exterior gets a litany of fashionable gloss-black design elements as well as its own special 20-inch forged aluminum wheel design. Inside, there are model-specific floor mats and seatbelts, and lest you forget you upgraded to the quickest M5 to date, the TFT screen in the instrument cluster flashes an M5 Competition logo when you fire it up.
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In the race for superiority in the weaponized-sedan segment, BMW has upped the ante. Now we wait to drive it.
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