BMW is attending this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed to showcase the eighth-generation 5 Series Sedan. It’s not just any version of the G60 but the fully electric i5 in its hot M Performance guise. The M60 has brought its Fire Red Metallic paint and carbon fiber accents to West Sussex where the event has been organized for 30 years. Sadly, Saturday’s activities have been canceled due to high winds, but attendees will be able to check out the sporty zero-emission 5er on Sunday.
BMWBLOG is on location and we were able to take these images on a rainy Friday. The bad weather couldn’t stop us from getting up close and personal with the first-ever i5 M60, the temporary range topper until the M5 arrives in 2024 in both sedan and wagon flavors. The M Lite model stands out with its sportier kidney grille design featuring a thick horizontal bar proudly carrying the M logo. BMW has already said the next-gen M5 will use a variation of this front grille.
While this i5 M60 is a standard version, there’s an upgraded configuration of the electric sports sedan in Munich at the BMW Welt with M Performance Parts. Naturally, BMW brought a right-hand-drive car to Goodwood since the event takes place in the UK. While those wheels with body-colored brake calipers measure 20 inches, you can go a size higher or lower when configuring your ideal i5 M60 spec.
The photos don’t accurately capture the growth spurt compared to the previous-generation G30 model. It has been stretched by 3.4 inches and widened by 1.3 inches, while height is up by 1.4 inches. In addition, the wheelbase has been elongated by 0.8 inches, thus making the G60 imposingly large. An even bigger 5 Series is earmarked for China where the G68 is expected to go into production early next year.
The M60 is not the only electric version BMW has prepared for the new 5 Series Sedan since you can settle for an i5 eDrive40 with a single motor and rear-wheel drive. Alternatively, customers can opt for one of the several gasoline, diesel, and plug-in hybrid models. The most exciting of them all will be a PHEV as the German brand has confirmed the new M5 Sedan (G90) and M5 Touring (G99) are going to use an adaptation of the XM’s drivetrain.
Although the 2024 5 Series’ lineup is diverse, it is missing the M550i. Consequently, there’s no V8-powered version currently available, so you’ll have to wait until next year’s M5.
