While most car enthusiasts know about and appreciate the M5 E60 for the fact that it featured a naturally aspirated V10 engine (plus a six-speed manual in the U.S.), some might not know about its “chronic” reliability issues.
The problem is actually with the rod bearings, which were prone to failure and could in fact destroy your entire engine, basically leaving you with a useless chassis. A new engine would cost more than the car at this point.
As Doug DeMuro points out, this rod bearings issue wasn’t some type of fluke event that only affected a small percentage of E60 M5s, which means that if you’d like to buy this car anytime soon, you should definitely make sure that it’s been properly serviced and this issue has been rectified.
Still, assuming you own one or are about to own one that’s in very good shape, odds are you’re going to be extremely happy with it, especially if you appreciate the V10 plus manual gearbox combo. So while the E60 M5 is not without its quirks, overall this is a very well balanced car, comfortable, well-built and some might even argue good looking – we’ve heard countless opinions both for and against.
As for performance, the 5.0-liter naturally-aspirated V10 produces 507 PS (500 HP) and 520 Nm (384 lb-ft) of torque, and if you floor it, you’ll be doing 100 km/h (62 mph) in just 4.7 seconds and will eventually max out at an electronically limited 250 km/h (155 mph).