Exclusive Drive: BMW M5 Safety Car
Teamspeed gets a rare exclusive treat in this years Bathurst pace car
Words and photos by Karl Peskett – Teamspeed Contributing Editor

What is it? The actual pace car used in the Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race – it also happens to be the brilliant BMW M5.

Why do I care? Um, it’s a 560hp V8 and rear-wheel-drive. Why wouldn’t you care?

How fast is it? 4395cc V8 twin turbocharged, 560hp@6000-7000rpm (412kW), 502lb ft@1500-5750rpm (680Nm), 0-62mph 4.3sec, 155mph vmax (190mph with M Drivers Package)

How much is it? From $92,000 (estimate)

Mount Panorama. It’s a 3.9-mile circuit which is actually a public road loop in the town of Bathurst in Australia which ascends over 570 feet half way through the loop. It then descends the same height on the other side, giving one of the corners the appropriate title of “The Dipper”. You can drive it every day of the year, except for the few times when it becomes a racetrack.

Because of its length, and its altitude, cars which race around it get a real workout. But no more so than when the Bathurst 12 Hour is held. That means a full 12 hours of flat out racing around a mountain. Fun? Maybe. Gruelling? For sure. Competitive? You bet.

You may remember our own Jesse Taylor tackled the circuit briefly in the race-winning Audi R8. But this week Teamspeed has slipped behind the wheel of the Bathurst 12 Hour pace car, the German super-sedan from Munich – the BMW M5.

So, let’s get to the elephant in the room straight away – the sound. The pace car was originally fitted with an Akrapovic exhaust which opens it up and clears its throat. Brilliant. But for our drive, because it had to be street legal, the factory exhaust went back on it. Not so brilliant. Why? Well, it means a complete lack of V8 note. Like, none. BMW M3? Now there’s a glorious V8 sound. But with its twin turbos, the M5 sounds like a boxer four-cylinder. Shoot me for saying it, but it calls to mind the WRX STI. Unfortunately, the engine noise does not rise above the E60’s visceral high-revving V10. But let’s put that aside for a minute.

Let’s deal with how it drives. And, put simply, it drives brilliantly.

You have to keep reminding yourself that this is a four-door car; a practical, comfortable, and simple car to get in and out of which you can load up with luggage, golf clubs, or whatever you want to bring along. But with its potential to go from 0-60mph, thanks to its 560hp V8, it’s also one of the quickest saloons on sale today.

To cope with all that mumbo, and to keep it on the track, the pace car was fitted with KW coilover suspension, which drops the ride height slightly, but amazingly doesn’t ruin the ride.

The pace car’s grip is just astonishing. You can feel the weight as it changes direction, but the suspension is remarkable in its ability to keep all four wheels firmly planted on the ground.

Even with the stability control fully off, you can feel the tires trying to break traction, but ultimately meeting with the laws of friction. In first gear, it struggles to let go, and there’s a slight chatter as the tyre jumps each gap between the tread blocks but then snags on the tread itself. The mechanical grip is just phenomenal. But then, play a little higher in the speed range and use the inertia of that big back end (it’s almost two tonnes, remember) to break through the grip of the 295s, and the M5 can be trained to slide continuously. It’s such an easy car to drift that it makes you look like a pro, thanks to its Active M-differential, but more importantly, to its direct steering.

It’s a hydraulic system, which has three modes (Comfort, Sport and Sport Plus) but to be honest, we just kept it on Sport Plus for our time with the car – you can never have too much steering feel. Even around the straight ahead, you can feel the road underneath you, and it weights up beautifully in cornering.

The massive, six-piston, cross-drilled brakes also feel sublime. Get them hot, and they’ll howl a little. Get them really hot and they get a bit soft, but they recover pretty quickly and you never have to wonder whether you’ll have some bite – you will.

Special mention goes to the dual-cluch gearbox. Using three shift modes – smooth, firm, and holy-hell-that-hurt – the car can be driven as smoothly or as hard as you like. The paddles respond quickly to commands, and though the downshift could be a little sharper, the upshifts are faster than instant. It would be better if the downshift was more pronounced in volume…okay, I promise, that’s the last I’ll complain about the sound.

What gets to me about this particular car, though, is it lived its life as a pace car. That means ferrying several people around, having lights on top, being fitted out with wires all over the place, having equipment installed and generally being thrashed around the place. Prior to my time with the car, it was washed, vacuumed, and the exhaust and lights removed. When I got in it, there was zero evidence of it having lead a hard life. It was tight to drive, quiet, no creaks or rattles, the seats were immaculate, the carpet perfect and the plastics weren’t scuffed or scratched. It’s testament to the quality and longevity of the materials used.

For example, the dash is covered in leather, with the same colored stitching, as are the door trims. It looks as fresh as the day it came out of the factory. But so does the plastic below the dashboard, where the kick panels are. What helps here is the 5 Series’ beautifully soft-touch plastic. It’s a leap in quality that is putting BMW back in the luxury stakes where it should be.

But let’s be honest, no-one buys the M5 as a luxury car – there’s the entire 5 Series range for that. No, the M5 is a sports sedan that just happens to be luxurious. At 4.3 seconds from naught to 62mph there’s no argument about its performance. And in the pace car livery, no argument about if it grabs your attention – more than once on our drive we had people doing a double-take.

But what about the X factor? Well, that’s subjective. If it’s aural drama which grabs you, then perhaps the Jaguar XFR will be more your thing. Want a more clinical experience? The E 63 AMG is for you. But if you want a complete package – speed, economy, quality, handling, involvement – then the M5 is probably the only option for you.

Just make sure you remove the “Safety Car” stickers first…

 

That thing is awesome, steering wheel is on the wrong side though.

 

A few build pics for you guys:

 

Having fun across the atlantic are we?

 

Yum!

 

well,..nice review!

But it`s really not a safety car (anymore)
rather an F10 M5 with stickers on it

thanks for sharing though!

 

No mods besides stickers?

 

Yes that is cool.

 

I'm really impressed with all of the cars you guys have been getting your hands on. Awesome job turning Teamspeed into something special, DJ!

This M5 looks so badass!

EDIT:

"You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to DJ again."

 

I think it has KW coilovers, and it will be getting an Akrapovic exhaust if it isn't already installed.