M5 / M6 Comparison

[Filthy Monkey]

As some of you may already know, I am in the VERY lucky position of owning an M5 and an M6 and, as I tend to drive them both on a daily basis, it seems that I am in a pretty good position to give a back-to-back comparison...

Pictures of both cars can be seen in the following threads -

Automotive Utopia - M5 & M6 together at last. Enjoy!!
Pictures of my new M6

Unfortunately the M6 has just tipped over the 1,000 mile mark so it hasn't been through it's first service yet, but having driven it along some B roads on a trip to Camber Sands on the south coast of England at the weekend, I was given a pretty strong hint of what it is capable of...

More of that later. Let's talk about the M5 first - As most of you already know, it is, quite simply, the definitive sports saloon. When I first picked mine up from my dealer back in July I was amazed by how good it was - comfortable, spacious and pretty quick. I even liked the paddle gear change, although I didn't think it was as fast as all the reviews suggested. Then I had it serviced. The difference in performance was astounding once I was given access to the full rev range. The car comes alive above 6,000rpm and the gear changes at high revs in S6 are neck snappingly quick!

The more time I spent in the car the more I liked it. However, it really is one of those cars you have to take time to adapt to. You can jump in a Porsche 911, throw it around a twisty country road and it will do exactly what you expect it to do - accelerate fast, grip in corners and stop on a dime. Not so the M5. You jump in and you drive it as you would expect to drive a large car… You are driving something the size of a small island in the Maldives!! It's not meant to go fast and you're not going to risk £65,000 finding out if it does! So, you read the manual (yeah, right! We're men, we don't read manuals...!), check a couple of reviews, mess around with the i-drive, programme the M-Button then, brimming with confidence you start to wonder just what would happen if, instead of backing off going into the corner, you pressed the pedal just a little harder. It feels all wrong, but the more power you give it, the more it grips. This car doesn't just bend the laws of physics, it re-writes them.

The more I drove the M5, the more I realised that BMW had finally built the perfect hybrid of sports car / GT (okay, let's ignore fuel consumption for the time being). It is fast, focussed, comfortable and good looking (in an Arnold Schwarzenegger kind of way!). There was just no way that any car company could improve upon it.

Until now. Enter the BMW M6. The same engine, the same gearbox and the same peerless build quality, but this is a car that is so much more than the sum of its parts... This is one of the hardest cars I have ever bought. I already knew how good the M5 was when I finally had to hand over some cash for the M6 so to pay almost £20,000 more for something that, on paper, offered a similar driving experience, fewer seats and less space for the price of a well specced Mini Cooper S on top of the M5, was not a rational decision. However, I took a leap of faith, which continued into my colour choice, and went through with my order for an Indy Red M6.

I considered both silver and black, but felt that the car looked too much like a standard 6, despite the unique alloys and the quad tail pipes. Being specific to the M6, I felt that Indy Red would make it look that little bit more special and I was sooo right! The moment I saw the car in the flesh I knew I had made the right choice. The carbon fibre roof contrasts perfectly with the red paintwork and the alloys look stunning. It is not a beautiful car in the way that a DB9 is beautiful. It’s not aggressive in the way that the M5 looks like it could start a fight in an empty street. Think more Ferrari 430. It’s like the girl you see in a nightclub that you know isn’t typically pretty, but you still wish you could…

The first thing you notice when you get into the M6 is how snug the cabin feels. The M5 feels like a luxury saloon, the M6 feels like a proper sports car. The seats are designed to hug you and hold you in place - there is no need for active seat bolsters, as in the M5. Where these are mechanical in the M5, tightening to hold you in place as you break yet another law of physics, in the M6 they are static. You simply set the width you want and they hold you in place. Job done. Sportiness aside, they are still the most comfortable seats I have ever had in a car. Start the engine and you are immediately welcomed by a sound that tells you that this car means business rather than one that sounds like it will return 60mpg down the nearest motorway (sorry M5 owners…!).

The basics of both cars are the same - power modes, damper settings, gear change etc, but the overall driving experience is very different. Somehow the M6 shows up inadequacies in the M5 that you would never have imagined existed. From the moment you pull away you know that you are driving a car that is sharper and more focussed than an M5. Where the size of the M5 feels a little unwieldy going into corners until you get used to it, the low slung nature and sporty set up of the M6 makes you want to throw it sideways into the first bend you come across. On the stiffest of the three damper settings the car sits so flat through corners that body roll is almost undetectable. There is definite trade-off with ride quality compared to comfort mode, but the speed that this car can carry through corners will frighten any passenger. On a dry road it is highly likely that your brain will step in and slow you down before the car reaches the limit. If you are feeling mildly suicidal and decide to approach the limit it will start to slide with less warning than you get in an M5, but it is so easy to control on the throttle. It definitely feels like it has been set up for track use, but is still so usable on the road. At no point do you even think about how much weight you are carrying. The car feels so nimble that it just doesn’t figure. My only criticism of the handling is the lack of weight and feel in the steering at higher speeds, a by-product of the speed sensitive steering…

On the motorway both cars are very comfortable. In fact, I bought them in Glasgow and drove them to London the day they were delivered so I was given an immediate introduction to their motorway abilities. For long journeys the M5 is probably the better car – It has a greater feeling of space, is a little more refined and the higher driving position is a definite bonus. However, take them out of town and, unless you are carrying a few passengers the M6 is the car you want to be in. Although there will be very little difference between cars in terms of performance, the M6 is the more rewarding car to throw around.

The brakes on both cars are amazing, although not quite up to the standard of a 911. It took me a while to get used to the droning noise from them under heavy braking and I did, in fact, speak to my dealer about this for reassurance. Fortunately I read some information in the M5’s ‘quick start’ sheet informing me that this noise was normal - to do with reverse thrust from the afterburners or something like that…

Equipment in both cars is excellent, but the M6 does offer a few extras as standard over the M5 to help justify the price. The options list in the M6 is limited – I added bluetooth and TV along with a tracker. I didn’t bother with comfort access, but I did order high beam assist – It wasn’t available as an option at the time of speccing my M5. For £95 you get a main beam that switches itself on and off automatically! It sounds like a gimmick, but it is really nice to have. As soon as the road ahead is clear main beam switches on. If you come up behind a car or a car comes towards you it switches back to dipped beam. It only really works on dark motorways or country roads as street lights prevent it switching to main beam. Voice control comes standard on the M6 and, for anyone who is fed up scrolling through I-drive menus, it is a must have. For example, press the voice control button on the steering wheel, say ‘Perspective’ and the map comes up on the I-drive screen. The I-drive itself has also been improved slightly. This is probably down to a newer version of software, but certain things have been simplified.

One major disappointment in the M6 is the cup holder. You only get one in the front and one in the back, but the front holder has to be taken from a storage unit in the back and clipped into place whenever you want to use it. I’m sure they could have come up with something a bit more elegant… I haven’t tried the back seats yet, but it is fair to say that anyone over the age of 10 will not enjoy riding in the back. It is not a four seater. Luggage space, however, is excellent. I suppose that’s the one advantage of having such an ugly backend!!

Overall I would say that the M6 is a better car than the M5 and that is not something to be taken lightly. That any car can take what the M5 does and improve upon it is nothing short of incredible. Does it feel like an £80,000+ car? Yes! Is it worth almost £20,000 more than an M5? Definitely not, but that just shows what an amazing bargain the M5 is…

I’m sure I have missed a load of things out here so I will add to this thread as I think of anything else, but please feel free to ask questions and I will do my best to answer them…

[MRichmond]

Thank you for your informative comparison. I am glad that you are enjoying both cars.

[M-bitious]

Having driven both cars, I fully support your opinion, and I am glad the cars are so different. They serve different markets. I do not agree with the comments on the rear seats. I have had two women in the rear and provided you move the front seats forward, they were quite comfortable. They were 1.70m and 1.79 (don't know feet) so they're not tiny. Leg space is restricted, but for the rest it is more spacious than you would think.
I wish that the front lower part of the M6 seats could slide electrically as in the M5. That's quite neat.

Frank.

[Filthy Monkey]

Originally Posted by M-bitious

Having driven both cars, I fully support your opinion, and I am glad the cars are so different. They serve different markets. I do not agree with the comments on the rear seats. I have had two women in the rear and provided you move the front seats forward, they were quite comfortable. They were 1.70m and 1.79 (don't know feet) so they're not tiny. Leg space is restricted, but for the rest it is more spacious than you would think.
I wish that the front lower part of the M6 seats could slide electrically as in the M5. That's quite neat.

Frank.

That's one thing I forgot to mention - I think that's just a feature ( ? ) of BMW sports seats though... As for the back seats, it is probably easier to put somebody behind the passenger, but putting somebody behind the driver means (for me at least) moving the driver's seat too far forward. My Porsche 911 was the same. No problem if you pick up two girls, but if you get REALLY lucky you have to make sure at least one of them is very short...

[M-bitious]

Agreed, but when you have 3 girls in the car who's complaining about moving forward a bit

[m5-black]

The M6 confuses the hell out of me, let me put it this way when I first saw a Z8 - I realized what it was, and why it was.Now the M5 (I have one), it's the same thng, I intuitively know what it is, it's an uber Saloon - it's a sort of 4 door mobile reality distortion field, like when you press the M button and try that windy bit of road you've known for years, only this time I'll go a bit quicker, and reality distorts - wow did this big car really whip round that bit of road that quick.

Then there is the 911 - I have one - and I know cliches be damned, but for years it has started everyday, it shrugged off everything, it sat unloved in airport carparks for longer then it should of, its transported my first child ,she always slept in it, when she started talking she called it "the little car", it was even reasonable to service - it communicated what was happening under the wheels - the steering and road feel was superb - I could drive that car fast with total confidence, and those brakes - Cars should HAVE to have those brakes.

Now the M6 - what the hell is it - I've sat in it , I've driven it, I watched Top Gear struggle with it on Sunday night, but I still don't know what the hell I'd want one for - It is NOT beautiful - it does not handle like a 911 - its has power - its not my idea of a grand tourer - 'cause its just not beautiful enough to give me that "grand" feeling.

Why did BMW not give us something magnificent - something beautiful, something destined to be a classic - rather then a technology tour-de-force
with well no soul.

[MEnthusiast]

Good posting! I agree with your comparison. I was happily surprised at the difference in character of the M6. I was worried that it would be too similar to the M5. No. Its magnificent. Im also thinking Indy Red.....

[m5-black]

Would anyone like an V-10 Powered BMW car that looked just a little like this, just a little further away from Bangle-Land.

[markf]

Originally Posted by m5-black

The M6 confuses the hell out of me, let me put it this way when I first saw a Z8 - I realized what it was, and why it was.Now the M5 (I have one), it's the same thng, I intuitively know what it is, it's an uber Saloon - it's a sort of 4 door mobile reality distortion field, like when you press the M button and try that windy bit of road you've known for years, only this time I'll go a bit quicker, and reality distorts - wow did this big car really whip round that bit of road that quick.

Then there is the 911 - I have one - and I know cliches be damned, but for years it has started everyday, it shrugged off everything, it sat unloved in airport carparks for longer then it should of, its transported my first child ,she always slept in it, when she started talking she called it "the little car", it was even reasonable to service - it communicated what was happening under the wheels - the steering and road feel was superb - I could drive that car fast with total confidence, and those brakes - Cars should HAVE to have those brakes.

Now the M6 - what the hell is it - I've sat in it , I've driven it, I watched Top Gear struggle with it on Sunday night, but I still don't know what the hell I'd want one for - It is NOT beautiful - it does not handle like a 911 - its has power - its not my idea of a grand tourer - 'cause its just not beautiful enough to give me that "grand" feeling.

Why did BMW not give us something magnificent - something beautiful, something destined to be a classic - rather then a technology tour-de-force
with well no soul.

Its amtter of opinion,many love the looks of the m6,I have had more compliments in the last 3 weeks than in the last 3 years where I have had a 996tt,997s,AMGSL55 and have even had people ask me to let them take photos of the car.
As for 'no soul' ,the soul of any car is always its engine..a car with arguably the greatest engine ever having no soul ?
All of us seem to be enjoying the car ,and for me the element of exclusivity is very good.I have 5 M5s within 400 yards of my house and the number of 911s must be in the twenties..many driven by middle aged women.I have yet so see another M6 on the road,and the car attracts a lot of admiration from those who have some knowledge of cars.

[edlee]

Nice write-up. I'm glad that I chose the M6 over the M5 now. Anyway I still have my 545 should I need the space.