BMW E60 M5

I got mine on Friday...Interlagoa Blue with black full leather interior, Heads Up Display and almost evey other available option. I was really worried that the SMG would not be as 'involving' as a stick with a clutch peddle...man was I wrong. The SMGIII is much more involving and really rewards finesses much more than a stick shift. IMHO, you have to be a much better driver in tune with the engine and chassic more so with an SMG than a stick/clutch. I was really surprised that I liked it so much as I did not like the F1 shifter in the 355 and 360 I have driven before... I see it as the difference between a F1 type experience and a NASCAR experience...which do you prefer?

 

I did...I guess I still miss my old e39... just a little anyway...

 

That is correct. But, by "more involving" I do not mean more motion required as a stick/clutch obviously requires more motion with your right arm and left foot...what I mean is you really have to be in tune with what the engine and chassis are doing at all times to get the most out of the SMG...and when you do, it is more exciting than any stick/clutch car that I have every driven...And, I was planing to wait until the 2007 model when a 6 speed stick will be available for the USA market because I did not like the Ferrari F1 shifter cars I had previously driven...until I drove an SMG a few weeks back...

 

FYI, the e46 used SMGII whereas the e60 M5 uses SMGIII....and the differences is like night and day. After driving manual sticks for 30 years plus, maybe I just need a change. Nevertheless, I feel more involved with my e60 M5 with SMG than I did with my e39 M5 with a 6 speed stick by a large margin. I'm now trying to learn left-foot braking for my first track event in the e60 this July at Road Atlanta. And, it does take a few hundred miles to learn the technique of SMG shifting...and I drove over three hundred miles on Saturday alone! What is "PS2" ? And, what "button" are you talking about? My e60 shifts with steering wheel mounted paddles or a small shifter on the console...not a button...at least not for shifting gears...

 

Mine is the NEW e60 M5... but I indicated e39 by mistake as I just sold my e39 M5 after 6 years and 110k trouble free miles......

 

That looks just like mine...Interlagos Blue with black interior...the color is really amazing...it cahnges from a blue to a violet to a purple to almost black depending on the light

 

I have not taken any yet...I'm too busy driving it to get it to the 1200 miles "break-in" mileage so I can have the first service done and I can then rev it over 5500rpm and use the fastest S6 shift mode! I'll take some photos in a few weeks and post them hereon...