2018 BMW M5: Automotive Bliss With a Side of Mystery

M5: Toys, Tech & Tunes

BMW stuffed the interior of my press car with goodies. The Executive Package added such niceties as soft-close doors, heating, ventilation, and massage functions to the front seats; four-zone climate control, a WiFi hotspot, and a 3D, 360-degree camera system.

Engineers put a variety of safety technologies inside of the Driving Assistant Plus Package, including Active Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Active Lane Keeping Assist with Side Collision Avoidance, and Front Cross-Traffic Alert.

iDrive 6.0 wasn’t without its challenges, but it wasn’t impossible, either. I could twirl a finger in front of the 10.2-inch high-resolution center screen to activate Gesture Control and increase or decrease the volume of the 1,400-watt, 16-speaker Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound system. Although I don’t consider myself an audiophile, I’m always eager to listen to how different car audio setups perform. One of the first things I do when I get into a new press vehicle is zero out all of the settings on the equalizer to make sure I hear the sound system in its most natural state. Experiencing to the Bowers & Wilkins setup made it clear that not all bass is created equally. A few of the automotive audio systems I tested in the past had plenty of that low-down punch, but it tended to be a booming distraction from the lyrics and the rest of the music. In the M5, the bass came out as a rich and soothing sound, not a percussion grenade.

No Track Required

BMW declined when I asked if I could take the M5 to a local track for untimed solo laps. Luckily, I live in Austin, Texas, which is surrounded by plenty of winding backroads. Despite the occasional presence of slow drivers or law enforcement, I enjoyed my time in the M5. In fact, I wanted more of it. Some cars feel good to be seen in. I didn’t care if anyone saw me driving the M5. I would have been happy driving it out in the middle of nowhere, feeling the strong pull of its engine, working with the organic weight of its steering, and outrunning the exhaust roar behind me.

Push the Red Button

The M5 allows you to pick the performance mode for a variety of systems, including the engine (Efficient, Sport, and Sport Plus), suspension (Comfort, Sport, and Sport Plus), steering (Comfort, Sport, and Sport Plus), transmission, and M xDrive setup. You can program a mix of those into the red M1 and M2 buttons on the M5’s steering wheel.

Before I used those, I made sure to do plenty of driving when the M5 was in its most sedate settings. It was the perfect cruiser. Its ride quality was gentle and compliant. Road noise was minimal. I would not have hesitated putting 500 miles on the M5’s clock in a day.

Then I stored the Sport engine, suspension, and steering settings; fastest automatic shifts (D3), and the 4WD Sport/MDM mode in M1. Throttle response was almost instant and the power came in a seemingly unrelenting wave when my right foot broke open the floodgates. Keeping the throttle down in the M5 was both thrilling and eerily calming. Wherever it was going to take me, it was going to get me there quickly. And I wanted to go.

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Derek Shiekhi

Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.

After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.

While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.

Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.

In addition to writing for a variety of Internet Brands sites, including JK Forum, H-D Forums, The Mustang Source, Mustang Forums, LS1Tech, HondaTech, Jaguar Forums, YotaTech, and Ford Truck Enthusiasts. Derek also started There Will Be Cars on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.