M-Power, torrents of torque, fuel-economy, and a wagon. Ideal package?
BMW has premiered their ultimate diesel saloon in the form of a G30 5 Series. Available as a sedan or wagon-style Touring, the M550d xDrive is oil-burning sibling to the petrol-powered M550i that produces an M5-chasing 340kW from its twin-turbo V8.
In the 2017 M550d, the pump gas is obviously replaced with the black stuff and combusted in what BMW claims to be the most powerful 6-cylinder diesel engine in any passenger car. It’s 3.0-litre straight-six is supplemented by four turbochargers that work in multiple stages to ensure ample shove is available at low revs as well as at the top end.
It produces 294kW and a titanic 760Nm of torque that’s handed to the driveline from 2,000rpm. Even with all-wheel drive, we suspect that the traction control will have to intervene quite often in order to quell any wasteful wheel spin.
The century sprint takes just 4.6 seconds, which 0.2 seconds slower than the M550i and its larger petrol V8, but roll-on performance should leave the petrol version well behind. And as icing on the cake, the oil burner is far more fuel efficient, claiming to sip just 5.9-litres/100km on a combined cycle.
Again mirroring the M550i, the M550d’s motor is mated to an 8-speed ZF automatic transmission, something of a BMW staple at this point. The M sports suspension is standard (10mm lower), so is Integral Active Steering, an M aero package and exhaust system with twin tailpipes, and lastly a set of 19-inch Double Spoke 664M light alloy wheels in Cerium Grey.
BMW hasn’t detailed the equipment to come standard with the car, but it should be identical to the M550i released earlier, meaning it will be packed to the gills with nearly every feature the new 5 Series has to offer, if not attainable as variant-specific options.
As we said before, these ‘not-quite-M’ versions of the new 5 Series should provide adequate satiation for those tempted into the BMW 5 Series fold, especially those looking for serious performance without venturing down the M rabbit hole. An all-new M5 is in the works, sure, but if the F10 was any indication, we may not see an M5 Touring this time around either, making the M550 pair the quickest wagon 5ers around.
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