[06x09] July 24th, 2005

They REALLY love the Batman Begins Soundtrack on that show! They used it at least 4 times that I can recall off the top of my head. Anyone else notice this? Not that I blame them, it is an amazing movie which I've seen three times in the cinema so far.

1092470379.jpg
 
dolfijn999 said:
RenaultFreak said:
fbc said:
RenaultFreak said:
jeesus this episode was good, of course I loved the Megane :mrgreen:

what's with the A Class foglights going on and off all the time? I don't get it...sometimes it was the right one and sometimes it was the left one and sometimes both were off :?

I noticed the fog lights too - I thought maybe each side turned on when you made a left or right turn (like a cornering light), but there were times one was on in a straight line. merc quality perhaps?

it's not the first time I see this, on an earlier test (on 5th Gear I think) the same car did the same, fog lights would be on and off incesantly...

if its a feature I wanna know about it, if it's an issue I think MB is fucked because most cars will do that then...

According to the MB website "cornering light function integrated in the oval fog lamps"

see? I had doubts this was a problem...
however it sounds stupid :lol:
 
My first post here. My views on the episode.

Golf mk5 GTI kicks ass. But we already knew that :D

But i didn't like the M5-report...
About the "uncontrolable" satnav: if you don't enter a route, it won't give any directions, right? So the lady will shut up. And even if you use the satnav, thing like spoken messages are always customisable (only spoken/only on screen/both for example)
About the "louder volume": apperently he used the wrong button on the steering wheel :roll: C'mon, that's just b*llshit. Atleast try to understand the car. If you push the "tune up"-button, you won't here your song any louder, we' knew that...
If the car is not in M-mode, JC's talking like he's driving a 70bhp Vento diesel... And all the sudden, in M-mode, it's "the best thing ever"...

The M5 is a good car, iDrive is probably just a case of getting used of it. I want a test drive myself :)
 
subymaster said:
It looked antsy and nervous throughout the entire lap, like the Stig was trying his damndest not to have it go flying off the track. Maybe it's something common to all M5's, I've never had the pleasure of driving one.

Have you seen the 5th gear review of it? Looks perfect in that.

My hypothesis about the m5's perfomrance was BAD tires. The stig had a good amount of oversteer at almost every corner exit. However turn-ins looked very good and had 0 understeer...which leads me to believe the rear tires were shot to hell. The front tires had enough grip to let the stig come in hot, but when he got on it at corner exit the rears had nothing. The stigg probabaly got his best lap by going in fast and coming out with a little oversteer rather than coming in slow and exiting neutral.

There is NO way bmw gave the M5 that kind of oversteer bias from the factory...its unsafe.

Also like they said, all the cars above the m5 were basically supercars.


Thats what was going through my head -- maybe they were all season tires or something.
 
jarborra said:
subymaster said:
My hypothesis about the m5's perfomrance was BAD tires. The stig had a good amount of oversteer at almost every corner exit. However turn-ins looked very good and had 0 understeer...which leads me to believe the rear tires were shot to hell. The front tires had enough grip to let the stig come in hot, but when he got on it at corner exit the rears had nothing. The stigg probabaly got his best lap by going in fast and coming out with a little oversteer rather than coming in slow and exiting neutral. There is NO way bmw gave the M5 that kind of oversteer bias from the factory...its unsafe.

Very good analysis. Thanks for the insight, that could well have been the reason.

subymaster said:
Also like they said, all the cars above the m5 were basically supercars.

Except the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII MR FQ-320 right? That's only ?29,999 and a car that I hoped a 507bhp ?62,000 BMW M5 would beat.

http://img50.imageshack.**/img50/9308/m5speed0ty.jpg

WTF?!?

:shock:




Horsepower isn't everything, especially not on a tight track.
 
wescx said:
Mischief007 said:
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm M5...........I'd give my life for one ;).

I dont really see how that would help you :)



Id give your life for one too :lol:

I meant as in all my possession and my soul, job, life in general. ;)

We don't needed another M5 crashed ;) :lmao:
 
subymaster said:
It looked antsy and nervous throughout the entire lap, like the Stig was trying his damndest not to have it go flying off the track. Maybe it's something common to all M5's, I've never had the pleasure of driving one.

Have you seen the 5th gear review of it? Looks perfect in that.

My hypothesis about the m5's perfomrance was BAD tires. The stig had a good amount of oversteer at almost every corner exit. However turn-ins looked very good and had 0 understeer...which leads me to believe the rear tires were shot to hell. The front tires had enough grip to let the stig come in hot, but when he got on it at corner exit the rears had nothing. The stigg probabaly got his best lap by going in fast and coming out with a little oversteer rather than coming in slow and exiting neutral.

There is NO way bmw gave the M5 that kind of oversteer bias from the factory...its unsafe.

Also like they said, all the cars above the m5 were basically supercars.

Well JC did mention at the end that after Stig did laps in the Blue M5, the warning lights came on. A previous test he did on a pre-production model had problems with the diff.

Maybe there's a problem with the M-Differential that could have contributed to the slow lap time.
 
carmaniac said:
subymaster said:
It looked antsy and nervous throughout the entire lap, like the Stig was trying his damndest not to have it go flying off the track. Maybe it's something common to all M5's, I've never had the pleasure of driving one.

Have you seen the 5th gear review of it? Looks perfect in that.

My hypothesis about the m5's perfomrance was BAD tires. The stig had a good amount of oversteer at almost every corner exit. However turn-ins looked very good and had 0 understeer...which leads me to believe the rear tires were shot to hell. The front tires had enough grip to let the stig come in hot, but when he got on it at corner exit the rears had nothing. The stigg probabaly got his best lap by going in fast and coming out with a little oversteer rather than coming in slow and exiting neutral.

There is NO way bmw gave the M5 that kind of oversteer bias from the factory...its unsafe.

Also like they said, all the cars above the m5 were basically supercars.

Well JC did mention at the end that after Stig did laps in the Blue M5, the warning lights came on. A previous test he did on a pre-production model had problems with the diff.

Maybe there's a problem with the M-Differential that could have contributed to the slow lap time.

If theres a problem with the LSD in the rear, that could definitly cause all that oversteer.
 
CyberMonkey said:
Stiggy is on LSD? omg, that explains a LOT of things!

:lol:
 
jarborra said:
Except the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII MR FQ-320 right? That's only ?29,999 and a car that I hoped a 507bhp ?62,000 BMW M5 would beat.

Difference being the Evo would need a service after every lap and replacement tyres every lap and a half.

Did seem a bad lap from Stig though. Very untidy.

(Oh, first post. Hello all!)
 
Plissken said:
jarborra said:
Except the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII MR FQ-320 right? That's only ?29,999 and a car that I hoped a 507bhp ?62,000 BMW M5 would beat.

Difference being the Evo would need a service after every lap and replacement tyres every lap and a half.

Did seem a bad lap from Stig though. Very untidy.

(Oh, first post. Hello all!)

Hello!
:thumbsup:
 
The drunk driving segment is probably the funniest segment ever on Top Gear. The part where Richard is trying to say "vinegary" was hilarious!. :lol: Along with this episode and the SLR race, it's the best so far of the season.

The Stig's identity is supposed to be a secret, so it wouldn't make any sense if he started giving advice now, would it? If you want advice from a race car driver, watch Tiff on Fifth Gear. No point in complaining because the producers of Top Gear make their own decisions of what to put on the show.
 
Great Episode. I'm jumping on the "audi woman" band wagon.
To who ever said there was no market for the M5, you seem to ignore the fact that there is a 2 year waiting list (this is world wide btw) for the car.

I finally understand just why JC makes so much fun of "motorcyclists"

http://img251.imageshack.**/img251/663/snapshot200507261843199ae.jpg
http://img251.imageshack.**/img251/9919/snapshot200507261844119my.jpg

He reminds me of "the gimp" from pulp fiction.
 
jarborra said:
subymaster said:
My hypothesis about the m5's perfomrance was BAD tires. The stig had a good amount of oversteer at almost every corner exit. However turn-ins looked very good and had 0 understeer...which leads me to believe the rear tires were shot to hell. The front tires had enough grip to let the stig come in hot, but when he got on it at corner exit the rears had nothing. The stigg probabaly got his best lap by going in fast and coming out with a little oversteer rather than coming in slow and exiting neutral. There is NO way bmw gave the M5 that kind of oversteer bias from the factory...its unsafe.

Very good analysis. Thanks for the insight, that could well have been the reason.

subymaster said:
Also like they said, all the cars above the m5 were basically supercars.

Except the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII MR FQ-320 right? That's only ?29,999 and a car that I hoped a 507bhp ?62,000 BMW M5 would beat.

http://img50.imageshack.**/img50/9308/m5speed0ty.jpg

WTF?!?

:shock:

Well, you have to factor most of the things Tiff said in his review. The M5 is one fat lard of a car with all that luxury and safety equipment on it. It's not the tires... if it was it wouldn't be too much. Upgrade the tires on the CLS55 and it'd post similar times to the M5 as it stands.

The Evo has standard amenties, weighs a whole lot less and screams out of corners with every acronym under the sun helping it's AWD. You also forget acceleration that's just as fast as the M5. And with the Evo IX posting 4 seconds faster than the VIII MR on the Nordschiefe, the Evo always is a performance bargain it was designed to be.

You also have to consider the M5 against it's Merc rival, which is better looking... more luxurious and easy to use... and that much more effortless as an everyday car. It's only a step slower... and that's on the outgoing AMG SC V8. Oh... and the Merc won't blow up after you flog it like the M5.

People that buy an M5 are people that want a luxury/status car that drives like a sports car and goes like one. That it definitely does. It's slightly different from customers purchasing a high end AMG. Those customers want a blend of luxury and effortless mindbending power. If you've ever had the pleasure of putting your foot down on a 55 or even a 65 AMG you know what I mean.

Oh BTW, I don't want the new M5... it seems like it would spend most of its time breaking everytime it gets flogged so why not buy the E55/CLS55 and take the money you save for a Gixxer for your kicks on the track... can't quite afford the Evo IX unless you drop down to a E500 + Evo.


The new M5 fails where the old one dazzled... it's not both a comfy sedan that's screaming fast to drive. It's a fragile, overcomplicated, hairy supersedan that isn't as comfy as its rivals (RS6, E55/CLS55, STypeR, etc)... it's hopefully cheaper than a Maserati Quattroporte or else, you might as well buy that one since it didn't blow up when Vicky drove it and it has normal controls instead of crappy iDrive.

EDIT: I just noticed that even on it's POS crap OE tires... the Vette is right there. Buy Vette and luxury sedan for price of M5.
 
Kokomo said:
Well, you have to factor most of the things Tiff said in his review. The M5 is one fat lard of a car with all that luxury and safety equipment on it. It's not the tires... if it was it wouldn't be too much. Upgrade the tires on the CLS55 and it'd post similar times to the M5 as it stands.


I thought we were comparing cars the way they came out of the factory. If you upgrade the CLS then you might as well put pirelli's on the M5, and I guarantee you it will be ahead once again. (from what I heard they are coming with Conti's or michelins)

The Evo has standard amenties, weighs a whole lot less and screams out of corners with every acronym under the sun helping it's AWD. You also forget acceleration that's just as fast as the M5. And with the Evo IX posting 4 seconds faster than the VIII MR on the Nordschiefe, the Evo always is a performance bargain it was designed to be.

Its not just as fast, its MUCH faster at 3.5 to 60. The IX is faster than the MR because its suspension settings are softer instead of rock hard, if you put the M5 on EDC 1 instead of 2 its faster around nurburgring as well (i will have to dig up a link if you need proof.. hopefully its still in cache). And since gigantic turbos do nothing at high speeds, I have reason to believe that the M5 is faster than the evo around nurburgring. The top gear test track is small.

You also have to consider the M5 against it's Merc rival, which is better looking... more luxurious and easy to use... and that much more effortless as an everyday car. It's only a step slower... and that's on the outgoing AMG SC V8. Oh... and the Merc won't blow up after you flog it like the M5.

The M5 wont blow up after you "flog" it. Seriously, they aren't going to sell a car to everyone that keeps blowing up so stop referring to it as a sure thing. Maybe they got an early version, I dont know I dont work for bmw but I'm sure if there was a problem it would be fixed. You forget that the CLS's traction control can't be turned off, so if you were to track the car your brakes would overheat every single time just like jeremy's. Its not only a step slower, its probably a few seconds slower. The mclaren SLR is slower than a 645ci on nordshleife. Once again, the top gear test track is small.

People that buy an M5 are people that want a luxury/status car that drives like a sports car and goes like one. That it definitely does. It's slightly different from customers purchasing a high end AMG. Those customers want a blend of luxury and effortless mindbending power. If you've ever had the pleasure of putting your foot down on a 55 or even a 65 AMG you know what I mean.

I agree. Cars that go ridiculously fast in a straight line but turn like a sofa. Yes I've driven the SL55, wonderful car on the highway or the drag strip. But I dont take my mercs to the drag strip, if I wanted to I'd buy a mustang or something and tune it up.

Oh BTW, I don't want the new M5... it seems like it would spend most of its time breaking everytime it gets flogged so why not buy the E55/CLS55 and take the money you save for a Gixxer for your kicks on the track... can't quite afford the Evo IX unless you drop down to a E500 + Evo.

Because the CLS is more expensive? Like... almost ten thousand dollars more expensive? german tv vox posted base price of the M5 at 86,000 euros and the CLS at 96,164.

The new M5 fails where the old one dazzled... it's not both a comfy sedan that's screaming fast to drive. It's a fragile, overcomplicated, hairy supersedan that isn't as comfy as its rivals (RS6, E55/CLS55, STypeR, etc)... it's hopefully cheaper than a Maserati Quattroporte or else, you might as well buy that one since it didn't blow up when Vicky drove it and it has normal controls instead of crappy iDrive.

No its not cheaper than the quattroporte. If I wanted a comfy rival to the M5 I would definately consider the CLS, but I dont. Once again, it wont blow up.

EDIT: I just noticed that even on it's POS crap OE tires... the Vette is right there. Buy Vette and luxury sedan for price of M5.

Buy a vette and luxury sedan and a motorcycle for the price of the CLS. The people that want these super saloons obviously want one, I dont understand this telling them what to do. They dont want a corvette. If they wanted a real sports car they could get a 911 or something. For the record I think the CLS is a great car, I just think what you are saying is wrong.
 
EDIT: I just noticed that even on it's POS crap OE tires... the Vette is right there. Buy Vette and luxury sedan for price of M5.

If you don't already, you should goto work for "the big 3", they like to tell their customers what they want, rather than listen to the customer and give them what they want.
 
Overall a good ep.
As far as the M5 goes....Meh
If I wanted a car that can go 207 mph, I want it to look like it goes 207 mph. The M5 just looks like it's a fat lump of lard. Give me a DB9 any day.
 
Top