Give Me Five

While the world has been mesmerised by the automotive Second Coming that is the F10 BMW M5, there's been far less attention paid to another, perhaps altogether more important new 5 Series. Naturally, the 520d EfficientDynamics doesn't have the heritage, the lineage, the folklore to live up to, but away from super saloon madness, in the tooth and nail fight of company car fleets, it's the undisputed king.

So here's a simple question? Which Five would you rather have?

Is it just me that really likes those lo-drag alloys?

As with most car comparisons, that which isn't subjective (styling, badge kudos) comes down to simple a Top Trumps numbers game, and as far as performance is concerned, the M5, as you'd hope, has it by a country mile.

Criteria	M5	520d ED
Engine	4395cc V8, Twin-turbocharged petrol	1995cc In-line 4 cyl, turbocharged, diesel
Power	552 brake horsepower @ 6000rpm	182 brake horsepower @ 4000rpm
Torque	501 lb/ft @ 1500rpm	280 lb/ft @ 1750-2750rpm
0-62mph	4.4 seconds	8.2 seconds
Top Speed	155mph (limited) 190mph (limited) with cost option M Driver package	144mph

The 520d is trounced by the M5 in the speed stakes, thanks to the latter's comparatively enormous engine. However, given that the 520d has almost half the torque, and less than one-third the power of the M5, it's still an easily adequate performer. Its top speed of 144mph is competitive and safe for autobahn commutes where many will no doubt find a home, while its sprint to 62 betters its direct turbodiesel rivals from Audi, Jaguar and Mercedes. Furthermore, it'll be drinking a damn site less fuel than the lot of them while it's at it.

Here's where the M5 starts to come unstuck against its humble sister, in the just-as-important 'everyday' stakes.

Criteria	M5	520d
Weight	1945kg	1695kg
CO2 Emissions	232g/km	119g/km
Economy (claimed)	28.5mpg	62.8mpg
Base price	£73,040	£30,435

Just as the 520d gave a good account of itself out of its comfort zone, in the performance fight, the M5 makes an effort to appeal to head as well as heart. It is the cleanest, greenest M5 ever, thanks to its move to  forced induction. And while journalists have complained than even under light load, the engine never gets close to achieving its 28 mpg promise, you'd have to assume the 520d is guilty of similar frugality optimism, as are all new cars.

So there's the figures, now a return to the initial question: which 5 would you have? Yes, this is in all but a handful of ways, a total non-comparison, but after the cars were launched mere days apart, their shared presence in all this week's magazines and websites is nothing if not thought provoking. So allow me to play devil's advocate.

In a world teetering on the brink of financial oblivion (again), committing to running a two tonne machine with a 20mpg everyday thirst is a risk that, in £1.35 a litre Britain, looks about as secure as a UBS investment portfolio. The 520d, despite its 10 litre shallower fuel tank, can achieve well over double the M5's potential range, having cost less than half as much to buy. According to reviews, it'll still be vaguely entertaining, if not a full on 'Ultimate Driving Machine', and it'll certainly be less hard on tyres, brakes and suspension thanks to a 300kg advantage next to the M5.

If you crave the M5's aggressive snout and sills, you'll have to settle for the non-Efficient Dynamics 520d, which BMW will fit with the M Sport pack, giving your rolling juxtaposition the deep chin spoiler, big wheels, and flared skirts that adorn the range topper. You lose quad tailpipes, the nasty chromed wing vent, and the choice of garish press demonstrator blue paint, but can still have a paddleshift transmission and sports suspension. Interestingly, the parsimonious ED version is manual only. Interaction and involvement with a the driving experience, in a modern eco car? Who'd have thought it..?

The F10 M5 is no doubt a wonderful car. It'll be in the running for a trophy cabinet's worth of Car of the Year prizes, and assert itself over the E63 AMG, XFR and RS6 as the super saloon benchmark. As Clarkson will  certainly note for the umpteenth time, 'there has never been a bad M5.'

But in making neccessary concessions to efficiency, the M5 has certainly lost a thimbleful of its aura. It was never going to compare well to the flawed but legendary V10 car it replaces, as with the rose tints on, that car will be one of the all time great four door supercars. Given that the 520d ED could be had as an estate, or Tourer in BMW speak (while the M5 won't, given the poor sales of the last one), play at being sporty, and not break the bank to run, I wonder if the M5 may lose perhaps a couple of sales throughout its lifespan, to the non-alcoholic enemy within.

Or will there be a true solution for eco-minded M addicts, through the rumoured diesel M5? A 4 litre twin turbo oil burner, superior torque and economy to its petrol sister, and four wheel drive is all muted for the black pump car. If it materialises, hopefully it'll sidestep BMW's increasingly peculiar naming strategy. 'M5' is a lot better than '550d M xDrive ED' or the like.

Now may I refer you to the brilliant Steve Sutcliffe of Autocar, with what is, so far, the M5 review.



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