Upcoming 2018 BMW M5 goes for a stroll in San Francisco

The new 2018 BMW M5 is just a few weeks away from its official debut and prototypes are still being currently tested around the world. One of those test mules landed in San Francisco and was spotted earlier this week. The highly-anticipated M model is bound to write history by changing the way we view all-wheel drive cars and their behavior both on and off the track. What will remain the same though, compared to its predecessor, will the the engine architecture under the hood and the displacement. The new F90 M5 will be using a further enhanced version of the S64 4.4-liter V8 twin-turbo engine of the F10 M5, this time tuned to make around 600 HP and more torque than ever.

We’ve also previously learned that the new F90 M5 can get from 0-60 mph in under 3.5 seconds, which makes it the fastest accelerating BMW ever made. The rear differential is based off the one in the M3 and M4, but it receives carbon clutch blades for quicker and more precise torque vectoring.

The xDrive all-wheel drive system in the F90 M5 has three different modes and the ability to be completely rear-wheel drive. The first mode is regular “4WD”, which acts as the brand’s usual rear-biased all-wheel drive system. Then there’s “4WD Sport”, which will send most of the power to the rear wheels for most of the time and allow for quite a lot of slip before it starts to send power to the front wheels. The final mode is “2WD” which is full-time rear-wheel drive that will not send power to the front wheels no matter how drifty things get.

Last month, the new Need For Speed Payback video game featured the uber-sedan showcasing the car’s front end. Details are still sketchy as the picture published on BMW M’s Facebook page is not perfectly clear, but we now have a better understanding of the design of the front-end. Massive air intakes to the sides and another wide grille down the middle make sure there will be plenty of oxygen making its way into the eight cylinders of the S63 engine. Furthermore, we also get to see the side gills on the front fenders, something we’ve been wondering about for quite some time, some sources claiming that’s not going to be a thing on the new M5.

We expect to see the fully unveiled F90 M5 this Summer, followed by a public introduction at the 2017 Frankfurt Auto Show.

[Source: Carscoops]