Gentlemen,

The BMW M5 is a pretty quick machine!

I played with an M5 this morning through about 15 miles of twisties. Neither of us pushed our machines very hard, but in some places were approaching 100 MPH (that's plenty fast enough for me). In my case, I'm sure I just ran out of courage not machine . . . sustained high speed isn't my thing.

Comming off of the curves going into the straights I seemed to have my best advantage, easily pulling away from him (all that torque), but man did he catch up going into the curves.

In the end, he didn't pass me (or even try), but I sure couldn't lose him.

All in all, Great fun. :yesnod:


2002 Black/Black

 

I think carl v. has a M5 so maybe he will chime in and tells us a little about that amazing bimmer and how it compares to his Z06.

 

Sound like a fun time. Just be careful and keep the A/H on.

 

I think SW had both ask him.

 

Not so much performance equality... other phenomina are at work.

Comming into the turns, all he was doing was braking later and harder than you were. Pretty common for the chase car to do. That allowed him to make up ground at corner entries.

Further, at 60mph a 1 second difference between cars is 88 feet, at 30mph, that distance is 44 ft, at 20 mph it is just 29 feet (2 car lengths). This makes the car behind feel like he is really catching up fast at the corners, but loosing in the straights, when all that is happening is the same 1 second gap exists, but the distance expands and contracts.

The M5 is a really spectacular sedan. However, driven at the limits, the ZO6 will eat the M5 everywhere. If it doesn't, we should all be embarassed. If one really gives you trouble, just let keep it up for a longer distance, and wait for his tires to melt down, which won't take long if you set a brisk enough pace.

However, the really amazing thing is, just how close the M5 will run with the Vette, all the way up to within 80-85% of the ZO6's limits. It's easy to forget that, at anything under the cars limits, a lot of cars will keep up. In tight canyon roads, a Mazda Miata can give a ZO6 a run for the money, as long as the ZO6 driver is unwilling to really press the envelope. But, push the ZO6 to the wall, and the Miata will become a distant memory in short time. Problem is, one has to be enough of a driver, and a little stupid to boot, to run a ZO6 at its highest performance capabilities on public roads, regardless of who is in tow!

 

The M5 is a monster!! Not as fast as a Z06 but it is a completely different type of car. If you are not ready or underestimate one, they will suprise you.

I almost bought one but the Z8 put me under its spell and I had no hope to resist!! :D

 

I have an M5 in addition to an '02 Z06. In the raw acceleration and handling departments the Z06 is significantly superior, as it should be given that it's a pure sportscar and has 20% weight advantage. In the braking department I think things are close, with the pedal feel and braking performance slightly better in the M5 (in spite of it's weight).

Clearly the M5 has significant advantages in terms of being user friendly, as it can comfortably hold 5 people and has decent luggage capacity. The M5 is very luxurious, with all sorts of features (standard) that the Z06 doesn't have, like nav system, incredible seats, sunroof, etc.. The difference in build quality between the two cars is much greater than the $20K difference in price. The Corvette is shoddy in comparison.

If you're looking for a fabulous, no nonsense, high performance car the Z06 is it. If you're looking for a daily driver that is sophisticated, comfortable, luxurious, extremely well bulit, stealthy, and can run with the sports cars, the M5 is it. If I could only have one car the M5 would be it.

 

I only have one car now...and it is an M5. Do I miss my Quicksilver Z06? Oh yeah.

I am either going to wait for the new C6 Z06 or by a slightly used '02 and slap that Lingenfelter supercharger on it! Either way the M5 will stay as my incredible four season daily driver.

 

Until the 2003 E55 comes out. The M5 is the king of sport sedans. This is coming from a Mercedes fanatic. The current E55 is a great car and only hundreds of seconds away from the M5 in perfromance stats.

I love my Z. But I have to say, I don't know if I will tengo with the new CLK55 coming out. All the AMG cars will share a 469 hp 50? tq engine.

 

Great time to be a car buff for sure. I'm very happy that Mercedes is upping the ante with the next breed of AMG cars. It is expected that the next generation M5 will get the engine rumored to be under development for the 6 series. It is supposed to be a 500 HP V10 derived from their Formula 1 endeavors. Only knock I have on the M5 is that there is no paddle shifting version. I expect their paddle shifting SMG gearbox will be offered on the next M5.

 

Yeah, but they weigh about as much as a Panzer! :eek: The new SL55 AMG, which is an absolutely gorgeous looking car, has the 469hp / 516 lbs. torque motor, yet it does 0-60 in 4.6 seconds. Certainly not fast enough to take out a Z06 despite its much higher levels of power. The problem? The car weighs 4,400 lbs.!!! :eek:

It's an incredible car though, and if I had an extra $115k lying around, I would buy one. :D

 

SL 55 AMG too fast for tires. :D

 

My Z06 is faster than my M5, and my M5 is as fast as a stock C5 automatic, I have ran many to 100 and it's neck and neck. My M5 ran 12.97 and hooks up real well, but it is no match for the Z06 unless you snooze on the start. SL55 on order, why not. ;)


[Modified by hcvone, 10:16 PM 3/8/2002]

 

I have a Silver 2002 M5, all options. I have a 2001 Z06 with several bolt on mods (see sig). Of course I had to know which was faster in a straight line, knowing that the Z is the clear winner in the twisties. Off the line the M5 takes me, but mid third gear the Z takes over.
I have a ripper shifter and centerforce clutch in the Z. When I get out of the M5 and drive the Z, my left leg gets noticeably tired from the stiffer clutch. The M5 is all about luxurios feel and ride, with a pleasant surpise under the hood. But it is solid at 140 mph. I have surpirsed many 5.0 Mustangs, and Camaros with the M5.
:cheers: :D

 

Don't be so sure. There's a road test in Sport Auto (Germany) and Autocar (UK) that compared the SL55 with the Lambo Murcielago, Porsche GT2, Ferrari 550, and Aston Vanquish around the Nardo Bowl in Italy. The SL55 beat all of them, hitting 0-186mph in 32.5s. It was second behind the Lambo in top speed, hitting 203mph! That top speed is about 25mph higher than the Z06's.

 

Both the M5 and M3 both are very cool cars.

 

I would love to have an M5 if I had the money and needed a big sedan with serious performance. I'm more interested in the next generation of Bimmers because they are apparently going to make a big effort to reduce the weight of the cars. The M5 is a pig in that regard. It weighs almost 1000 pounds more than the Z06. So it just can't approach the braking and cornering ability of the Z and coming off those corners it has to haul its big a** up to speed. Still...if I had the money.

 

I do not know what the stopping distance is on an M5, it is 1000 lbs heavier than the Z06, but the brakes are the best part of the M5, of course it does not stop as fast as the Z06, but the brakes are huge compared to the Z06, and have a much better feel.

 

According to Car & Driver's "Manufacturer's performance ratings" the SL55 does 0-60 in 4.6 seconds. Power to weight ratio is 9.38 lbs per HP for SL55.

2002 Z06 does 0-60 in 3.9 seconds. Power to weight ratio is ~ 7.65 lbs per HP. Advantage: Z06

The only thing missing is the torque, which the SL55 certainly has an advantage at 516 lb-ft. But again, with that extra 1,300 lbs...

The only thing the SL55 has on the Z06 is theoritical top speed. But once again, its weight handicaps it there since there supposedly aren't any tires that can take the weight of a 4,400 lbs car doing 200 MPH +, so its limited to 155.

Anyhow, these cars are 2 different animals entirely. Making a comparison is a wasted effort.

 

The 203mph top speed for the SL55 is not theoretical. It was achieved in an independent road test by one of the most respected car mags in the world. However, they did disable the speed limiter. I'm sure a few SL55 owners will also pull the limiter.

Also as speeds increase, weight plays a smaller factor. Aerodynamics are far more important. This explains why the SL55 could outaccelerate the lighter Lambo to 186mph. The Lambo is set up to generate downforce at speed, but this increases drag.

The Z06 will beat the SL55 from 0-60 and through the 1/4, but the SL55 will probably have a better trap speed. From an 80mph punch on the freeway, I would definitely put my money on the SL55.