Early hints at what BMW is planning with the upcoming 2025 M5 are here, thanks to a frustratingly cropped, leaked photo of its rear end. Featuring M2-style angular design, quad-tailpipes, and a subtle trunk lid spoiler, the performance sedan looks ready to take on the competition.
Shared by Instagram’s @germanysfinest43, no details about how the photo came to be taken, nor where it was snapped, have been shared. So take this with a grain of salt, but the model in the photo certainly does look the part.
Starting on the left-hand side of the photo, we can see big M style wheels wrapped in large section width tires. Above them, the telltale signs of a widened wheel arch give this car the distinct impression of being intended for high performance applications.
Read: 2025 BMW M5 Touring Hits The Track As It Prepares To Hunt High-Performance Crossovers
Moving to the right slightly, a marker light contributes to giving the rear-end an angular design. Below it, a lower bumper section finished in black becomes a cutout for each side’s twin exhaust pipes, as well as a diffuser section. Above them, a slim spoiler over the trunk gives the car a focused look. Below it, all the way to the right of the frame, the start of an M badge is made hard to read by glare from the harsh lights above.
All of these design cues more or less conform to the spy photos we’ve already seen of the car testing at the Nürburgring and elsewhere. Since this one is uncamouflaged, it reveals more about the subtle character of the M5.
If this is, indeed, the real deal, we’re seeing it well ahead of schedule, as earlier reports suggested it wouldn’t be revealed until mid-2024, as a 2025 model year vehicle. That means that a few question marks remain about the new M5, though we have some hints about what will power it.
BMW is widely expected to use the XM’s powertrain in the M5. That would make it a plug-in hybrid, and would put a twin-turbo V8 under its hood. Whereas the XM makes 738 hp (550 kW / 748 PS) and 737 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque, rumor has it that it will be tuned to make 789 hp (588 kW / 800 PS) in the performance sedan (or wagon, depending on the buyer’s preference).
