studavis

I refuse to screw fat women for cash. No car is worth that sacrifice...cept perhaps a Ferrari.

DrLev99

As someone who went from an M5 to a 550i, here are my thoughts....

The 550i drives closer to a 530i than it does to the M5. Now that may be obvious to many, or not, but the M5 was pure exhilaration every moment I was in the car, even sitting in the garage with it I was king of the road. You feel connected to the M5 in a way that's hard to explain unless you've driven one for an extended period...or even a short one.

I don't feel the same in the 550i...the brakes, suspension and engine just don't compare, but I didn't expect them to. Yes, I like the low-end torque of the 550i compared to the M, but it still doesn't have that "push-you-back-in-the-seat" feeling that the M had. It was a fun 5 months with the M5, but I don't miss the huge payment or the constant fill-ups. In the end, it's about what you can afford. Don't let emotions make your decision for you. Use the old brain first and foremost.

sleeper50

Thanks for taking the time to post. Interesting and informative. I am surprised your "550 could out run the M5 off the line". I would have expected the 383 ft-lb torque of the M5 would have a bit more kick off the line than the 361 ft-lb of the 550. I have only driven teh e39 M5, so have no reference point for the e60 M5.

Glad to hear it is not too harsh for a daily driver, I plan to trade my 550 for an M5 at some point in the future!

Good Post

zen68

Torque of the 550i:
360 lb-ft @ 3,400 rpm

M5:
383 lb-ft @ 6,100 rpm

My buddy has a M5 (stock) and I out run him off the line every single time (M button on). He'll catch up about 80 MPH and all hell break loose

sleeper50

Thanks Zen, I guess it is a question of when the torque hits the back tires.

I am still intrigued, I believe the e39 M5 has 368 ft-lb of torque at 6,600rpm, but was of the understanding that even a dinan'd 550 with diff, etc, would not be able to match an e39 M5.

Need to find a buddy with an M5 that would be willing to trade for a couple of runsl

Richard in NC

The E39 torque peak was 3900 RPMs but it also had a ton of torque as low as 2000 RPMs. The HP peak was 6600.
The 550i is close to the E39 M5 but doesn't have the same kick all the way up the RPMs like the E39 M5.
I've not driven the new M5 to compare it.

tranman329

I went from a 08 550i to an 06 M5 and I love it.

zen68

Found this on youtube.