As super-saloons go, the Mercedes-Benz E63 and the BMW M5 are pretty much
secured as the top dogs within the
£70,000-£80,000 price range.
Both of these cars evoke a sense of
prestige, power and desirability, but which
one is better? That's a question that has
been asked over and over, even TopGear
took it on.
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| Battle Of the Super Saloons |
We're going to look at some of the key
facts and figures about the two cars, and
hopefully help you decide which one is
better for you.
PERFORMANCE:
The M5 houses a BMW's new fifth-generation
engine - hitting 62mph in just 4.4
seconds, thanks to a 4.4litre twin-turbo
V8, it certainly goes at some pace.
Pumping out 552bhp and a roaring 502lb ft
of torque, you just need to tap
the throttle to send this car lunging
forward, no matter what gear you're in.
Much like the M5, the E63 uses a similar
twin-turbo V8, but it's a 5.5litre that
gives you 518bhp as standard. To push up to 550bhp, you'll need to pay AMG an
extra £5,000 and over that to increase the
turbo. Both of the cars are limited
to 155mph, electronically.
RIDE & HANDLING:
The BMW comes with a beefed-up
super-suspension to cope with the power it produces,
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| E63 Inside |
bespoke adaptive shock absorbers, a
chassis-stiffening cross-brace and it's
clever M differential - so basically the M5
isn't like any other 5-series
at all. However, you have to drop into the
mix that it's not exactly
the smallest car, so ideally drive it round
some safer places first!
The E63 is again, nothing like a standard
E-Class. It has wider axles,
bespoke steering rack and three settings
for it's adaptive suspension.
Easy and agile to drive, almost predictable
- but not quite.
REFINEMENT:
The M5 has fat, sporty tyres that can, at
times, generate some road noise.
There's also the deep exhaust boom beyond
4,000rpm...however, you never get near
those revs when cruising in the UK.
The M5 is also fantastic at shutting out any
and all road noise.
While the M5's engine is turbine-smooth,
the E63 produces a feeling more of a
muscle car. Letting out a deep and languid
V8 exhaust rumble, even if you're just
pottering about town. Road noise is loud
and intrusive over coarse surfaces.
BUYING & OWNING
I'll probably never be lucky enough to own
one of these, but lets say you do have
a spare £70,000-£80,000 to chuck into a
motor, which one of these do you want?
The M5 comes in at around £73,000. Running
costs are high for machine, despite
BMW's attempt at tackling efficiency. This
model should return you 28.5mpg if
driven carefully.
The E63 comes in at around £75,000 - making
it a touch more exspensive. The fuel
economy comes in at 28.8mpg - so basically
identical to the M5.
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| M5 Inside |
BEHIND THE WHEEL & EQUIPMENT:
The M5 comes fitted with bespoke sports
seats and a cluster of buttons at an arms
reach gives you instant access to different
gearshifts, suspension and steering
weight settings - you know you're sitting
in something quite special here.
You also have BMW's iDrive system working
in harmony with the entire vehicle to
ensure you're getting the best drive on
whatever surface...although I wouldn't
suggest off-roading...
Welcome to the Mercedes E63 cabin. You'll
find yourself sitting in rather nice
AMG Sports seats adorned in Alcantara
Leather. One little problem we've found is that the steering is slightly offset
to the left, meaning us larger people may find ourselves banging our elbows
against the door...the Mercedes Command Infotainment isn't quite as
user-friendly as the iDrive either, still cracking though!
Equipment for the M5 comes with Heated and
Electric seats, front & rear parking sensors, cruise control, Bluetooth,
Satnav, DAB Radio, Four-Zone Climate Control...many more but those are the big
highlights for me.
The 63 comes with a bit more, with Mercedes
being luxury and all. You're going to have Luxury Auto Climate Control, Fully
Electric 'memory seats' (some seats would rather not remember certain things I
expect...) Sat Nav and a blind-spot monitoring system, how’s that for safety?
VERDICT:
Both of these cars are quite simply
fantastic. Which one would I chose? I've been thinking it through and I've
decided should I have find myself with that sort of money, I'd take the M5. It
just seems more fun, more sporty, bigger and chunkier on the road. If I was a
bit older however, I may chose the Mercedes - but as a man in my
20's...well...bring on the M5.
