New M5 just arrived........

[gtopaul]

at the dealership a few minutes ago. Can't wait for a test drive this afternoon. Sticker is at $96k (ouch). Came complete with a door ding courtesy of the shipping company.

Paul L

[Jay 535i]

Don't forget to press the 'power' button :D:D:D

[kyleN20]

drive it to my house, you can race my 535im, then well switch places, it ought to be fun

[Qube]

96k isn't bad... no wait that's USD :(

I was pricing out an 06 550i for about that much but in CAD.

YAY for the ///M button, boo for those who choose this stubby thing...

http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/7441/kif08149ko.jpg

[Jay 535i]

YAY for the ///M button, boo for those who choose this stubby thing...

No choice in the new M5.

Supposedly, BMW would have liked to offer a regular manual, but because of the way the 7-speed tranny is built, the shift pattern would have looked something like this:

http://www.theprogram.net.au/media/event/15773.jpg

So, SMG only.

Were you really considering buying a new 550? Aren't you, like, 19?

[Qube]

19? Far from it :)

That stubby looks really horrible though.

I said I was 'pricing' a 550i, not going to buy one. Just checking the gap between a base M5 and a topped off 550i. I got that impulse when I saw an e60 550i the other day.

[Jay 535i]

19? Far from it :)

That stubby looks really horrible though.

Sorry, don't know where I got that idea.

I agree it looks bad, and there's no need for it. You've already got paddles on the wheel. I say relocate the shifter to a column stalk a la 7 series and use the center console for something useful. You could, for example, fit a really big bong in there.

The SMG shifter looks like a limp penis.

[FiveOJester]

Last I heard BMW decided to offer a regular 6spd manual in the new M5, available later in the year.

From Car & Driver's latest issue:



But the biggest culprit is the SMG. In the most aggressive automated manual mode, it hammers home shifts like John Henry racing the steam drill—whop-whop-whop! But in full automatic, it’s all but impossible to avoid huge gasps between upshifts, particularly in the lower gears. One logbook scribbler summed up the test crew’s unanimous response: “I tried to leave it in auto mode, but I just couldn’t stand it.”

Perhaps the most telling testimonial on this second-generation SMG is this: Initially, this was to be the 2006 M5’s only transmission. However, BMW now plans to offer the option of a six-speed manual this fall. Enough said.



Rest of the article:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=15&article_id=10436

[dacoyote]

Sorry, don't know where I got that idea.

I agree it looks bad, and there's no need for it. You've already got paddles on the wheel. I say relocate the shifter to a column stalk a la 7 series and use the center console for something useful. You could, for example, fit a really big bong in there.

The SMG shifter looks like a limp penis.

AHAHAHAHHAHAHA....

Thats some funny ****

[Jay 535i]

Last I heard BMW decided to offer a regular 6spd manual in the new M5, available later in the year.

From Car & Driver's latest issue:



Rest of the article:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=15&article_id=10436

Hmm, that's news to me. Maybe C&D got their facts wrong. Wouldn't be the first time. Suppose they could be right, though.

My understanding, though, was that BMW was sinking all of its transmission efforts into a DSG-style twin-clutch tranny that would simultanously improve upon and solve the problems with SMG, without being an evolutionary step backward (e.g. an H-pattern manual).

From what I've read, a twin-clutch DSG-style setup is guaranteed to make you stop wishing for a regular manual. According to a VW technician, it makes SMG and Ferrari's F1 paddelshift look like "crap". Initial test drives of the Veyron confirm that, and in that car the tranny channels over 980bhp.

Way of the future...

[pundit]

96k isn't bad... no wait that's USD :(

I was pricing out an 06 550i for about that much but in CAD.

YAY for the ///M button, boo for those who choose this stubby thing...

http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/7441/kif08149ko.jpg
Sorry but, asthetically, these things leave me cold.
The interiors are just so cold and sterile.
Kinda reminds me of overpriced plastic outdoor furniture! :(

[Kalevera]

What?! You don't like that giganticly stupid huge hump in the center of the dash?!

[dacoyote]

What?! You don't like that giganticly stupid huge hump in the center of the dash?!

:-)

I love it when my car has a big ass in the middle of the dash

[gtopaul]

at the dealership a few minutes ago. Can't wait for a test drive this afternoon. Sticker is at $96k (ouch). Came complete with a door ding courtesy of the shipping company.

Paul L

the new owner traded in a Ferrari on it. They gave him $66k for the Ferrari. Not sure what model it was. Maybe I'll get a chance to drive tomorrow. I suppose they'll have to get the little nickel size door ding fixed anyway. Poor trucker who delivered the car said he hadn't had a damaged car all year un til this, his last load. He picked the car up in the rain and didn't see the ding. I've always heard never buy a car at night or in the rain. Must be some good advice.

Paul L

[Gayle]

What kind of screening process do dealers have to decide who gets to test drive an M5? Surely they try to weed out poor college students and other riff raft like myself who could not possibly afford that.

I went to the Ferrari/Maserati/Lamborghini dealer in Vegas last week. I was actually relieved they were closed so I didn't have to endure the distain of the sales reps. It would have been so embarrassing to be told don't sit in the cars.

[SharkmanBMW]

[QUOTE=jaylebo]and use the center console for something useful. You could, for example, fit a really big bong in there.
QUOTE]

LMAO!!
I can hook you guys up with my friends store if you need !!!
He owns a "High Times" outlet

[emw525E34]

Congrats. Now, lay off that Power button until you got 1000 miles on the clock. First 500 miles, no more than 5000 rpm, so set the warning just before that so you will know.

After that 500 miles which would be an easy cruise within a week or two, then you can rev the beast to redline. A week later, hit the POWER button and enjoy!. (On the track ...)

[Qube]

Congrats. Now, lay off that Power button until you got 1000 miles on the clock. First 500 miles, no more than 5000 rpm, so set the warning just before that so you will know.

After that 500 miles which would be an easy cruise within a week or two, then you can rev the beast to redline. A week later, hit the POWER button and enjoy!. (On the track ...)

You didn't read the subtext :) He didn't BUY an M5... the dealership there just got one for him to try out heh.

[gtopaul]

at the dealership a few minutes ago. Can't wait for a test drive this afternoon. Sticker is at $96k (ouch). Came complete with a door ding courtesy of the shipping company.

Paul L

Went in and drove the car this morning before any of the sales guys came in. Awesome car! The one word that sticks in my mind is "smooth." It's just a smooth application of power through all the gears. I whipped it onto the interstate to the next exit, about 2 miles, and was doing 115mph before I knew it and I was still in 5th gear and at a respectable rpm. Turns out the car is going to be picked up my the owner later today, the SECOND owner. The Ferrari seller just made a quick profit by selling the car again without ever taking delivery. We had the paintless dent guy fix the little door ding this AM and you can't tell it was ever there. Good job. All in all a great way to start a Friday.

Paul L

[Jay 535i]

[QUOTE=jaylebo]and use the center console for something useful. You could, for example, fit a really big bong in there.
QUOTE]

LMAO!!
I can hook you guys up with my friends store if you need !!!
He owns a "High Times" outlet

I'm interested in those "bubble bags".

http://www.bubblebag.com/