Next BMW M5 could get all-wheel drive, M boss says - Digital Trends
Yet Mercedes-Benz AMG and Audi’s RS-building quattro division have shown that all-wheel drive is pretty darn effective when harnessing massive amounts of horsepower, and it appears BMW M has been paying attention. The next BMW M5 could ditch its rear-wheel drive for all-wheel drive, according to a new report from Autocar. BMW already uses all-wheel drive for the X5 M and X6 M SUVs, but M boss Frank van Meel told the magazine that more future M models will get it, and that the M5 and related M6 are the most likely candidates. “The philosophy will remain rear-wheel drive, even if there is all-wheel drive,” he said. Audi has used all-wheel drive for its performance cars since the original Coupe quattro, but more recently Mercedes’ AMG division adopted it for the E63 AMG – the M5’s main rival. M purists probably won’t like this, but considering that BMW has already broken many of the division’s self-established taboos – including the use of turbochargers and building M-badged SUVs – that ship has already sailed. The real question is whether BMW can make an all-wheel drive M5 as lively and engaging. Source: www.digitaltrends.com
