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Hot though the BMW M5 is, it's been around for a while now. So if these spyshots don't immediately get your heart racing, we forgive you.
However, look closely. Notice anything strange about the front bumper? Those funny black marks above the lower air intakes, for example. What are they?
image © Automedia
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More intakes, apparently. And why does it need those? Well, because it seems Audi's new 572bhp twin-turbo V10 RS6 has BMW rattled. So, obviously, remedial action was required. The car in the photos isn't any old ordinary M5. No. Reportedly what you're staring at is new the M5 'upgrade', packing a massive 575bhp version of the high-tech M-Sport V10. The standard car makes 'just' 507bhp, and is already a rocket ship; this one is simply going to be insane.
image © Automedia
We've no idea yet how BMW has achieved the power gains. Until very recently, the German carmaker was something of a purist concerning petrol engines, preferring naturally aspirated over forced induction. But the current twin-turbo straight-six petrol in the 335i and 535i proves BMW can do 'charging as least as well as anyone else. Usually better. And a turbocharger or two would do wonders for the M5's low-down torque, which we've found to be a little lacking in the past. Our spy photographer reports this car sounded incredibly aggressive, and may have also been using a DSG transmission in place of the current SMG unit.
image © Automedia
Since the gearbox is perhaps the M5's biggest weakness, an upgrade in this area seems like a natural choice. Switching from the 'Sequential Manual Gearbox' to a twin-clutch 'Direct Shift Gearbox' - as pioneered by Audi and Volkswagen, coincidentally - should improve shift speeds as well as shift quality. No news on when the M5 'upgrade' might become available, but we would not be surprised to see further information arriving around the same time as the RS6; the German horsepower war has expanded into PR one-upmanship in recent months. 2008 should prove to be a very interesting year.
Spied: BMW X6
Driven: BMW M5 Touring
Twin-test: BMW M5 v Mercedes E 63 AMG
All our spy shots
