Wild 467kW BMW M5 CS leaked ahead of official debut

UPDATED 27/01/2021 1:30pm: Within hours of the BMW M5 CS being leaked across the internet, BMW Group Australia has today confirmed just 20 examples will be available locally, priced at a cool $264,900 plus on-road costs ($28,000 more than the M5 Competition), or $305,900 drive-away.

First Australian deliveries of the track-focussed new BMW M5 CS, which has also been confirmed to hit 100km/h in three seconds flat, commence in mid-2021.

Available to order via a $5000 deposit at the BMW Shop, the 2021 BMW M5 CS will come standard in Australia with leather and Alcantara interior trim, autonomous emergency braking, automatic parking, a Harman/Kardon premium surround sound system and the choice of grey or green matte paint.

Original story published this morning: The hard-core BMW M5 CS has been fully leaked online, giving us our first look at the white-hot super-sedan that features more power, bespoke styling and plentiful lightweight parts.

BMW's flagship performance sedan was set to debut later this month, but now all has been revealed by Instagram user Cochespias who uploaded images that are expected to be used for the launch event.

The images show that, even beside the M5 Competition, the CS introduces comprehensive updates to the BMW M5's body, including significant revisions to the aero and a new vented bonnet thought to be made of weight-saving carbon-fibre.

Those extra air-bending aids include a new front splitter, a huge redesigned rear diffuser and a larger bootlid spoiler, with a whole host of underbody aero tweaks also expected.

Perhaps drawing most attention are the cool copper highlights across the body, the set of matte gold 20-inch forged wheels and, reflecting its motorsport theme, yellow-tinted daytime running lamps that are designed to mimic an endurance race car.

Under the bonnet, the regular BMW M5’s 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 has had its power boosted from the M5 Competition’s 459kW to 467kW. 

Like before, the M5’s eight-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive system carries over, with the latter capable of being decoupled for sideways antics.

Large carbon-ceramic brake discs are set to be standard, along with huge red callipers.

Maximising performance, BMW engineers have already confirmed they've put the BMW M5 on a diet, adding more lightweight parts made from exotic composites that help reduce the kerb weight by around 70kg.

While that might sound impressive, the new BMW M5 CS will still tip the scales at 1870kg.

Some of the new parts include borrowing the same carbon-fibre bucket seats from the BMW M3 and M4. 

The second row, meanwhile, ditches its middle seat, ensuring the M5 CS will be strictly a four-seater.

Helping further distinguish the CS from the regular BMW M5 and M5 Competition, there’s new exterior paint colours while inside there’s an Alcantara and carbon-fibre cabin.

There’s no word on performance, but since the all-wheel drive 460kW/750Nm BMW M5 Competition is claimed to hit 100km/h in 3.3 seconds, the M5 CS should be on track to hit 100km/h in less than three seconds and top out at more than 320km/h.

To cope with the power, the new BMW M5 CS will ride on a retuned chassis with springs and dampers more suited to fast road and track driving.

Tipped to be priced around $US10,000 ($A14,500) higher than the current BMW M5 Competition ($234,900), the M5 CS could top $250K in Australia, where only a handful are likely to be offered.