BMW M5 vs Mercedes E63 - Which One is Better?

As super-saloons go, the Mercedes-Benz E63 and the BMW M5 are pretty much

secured as the top dogs within the £70,000-£80,000 price range.

Both of these cars evoke a sense of prestige, power and desirability, but which

one is better? That's a question that has been asked over and over, even TopGear

took it on.

Battle Of the Super Saloons

We're going to look at some of the key facts and figures about the two cars, and

hopefully help you decide which one is better for you.

PERFORMANCE:

The M5 houses a BMW's new fifth-generation engine - hitting 62mph in just 4.4

seconds, thanks to a 4.4litre twin-turbo V8, it certainly goes at some pace.

Pumping out 552bhp and a roaring 502lb ft of torque, you just need to tap

the throttle to send this car lunging forward, no matter what gear you're in.

Much like the M5, the E63 uses a similar twin-turbo V8, but it's a 5.5litre that

gives you 518bhp as standard. To push  up to 550bhp, you'll need to pay AMG an

extra £5,000 and over that to increase the turbo. Both of the cars are limited

to 155mph, electronically.

RIDE & HANDLING:

The BMW comes with a beefed-up super-suspension to cope with the power it produces,

E63 Inside

bespoke adaptive shock absorbers, a chassis-stiffening cross-brace and it's

clever M differential - so basically the M5 isn't like any other 5-series

at all. However, you have to drop into the mix that it's not exactly

the smallest car, so ideally drive it round some safer places first!

The E63 is again, nothing like a standard E-Class. It has wider axles,

bespoke steering rack and three settings for it's adaptive suspension.

Easy and agile to drive, almost predictable - but not quite.

REFINEMENT:

The M5 has fat, sporty tyres that can, at times, generate some road noise.

There's also the deep exhaust boom beyond 4,000rpm...however, you never get near

those revs when cruising in the UK. The M5 is also fantastic at shutting out any

and all road noise.

While the M5's engine is turbine-smooth, the E63 produces a feeling more of a

muscle car. Letting out a deep and languid V8 exhaust rumble, even if you're just

pottering about town. Road noise is loud and intrusive over coarse surfaces.

BUYING & OWNING

I'll probably never be lucky enough to own one of these, but lets say you do have

a spare £70,000-£80,000 to chuck into a motor, which one of these do you want?

The M5 comes in at around £73,000. Running costs are high for machine, despite

BMW's attempt at tackling efficiency. This model should return you 28.5mpg if

driven carefully.

The E63 comes in at around £75,000 - making it a touch more exspensive. The fuel

economy comes in at 28.8mpg - so basically identical to the M5.

M5 Inside

BEHIND THE WHEEL & EQUIPMENT:

The M5 comes fitted with bespoke sports seats and a cluster of buttons at an arms

reach gives you instant access to different gearshifts, suspension and steering

weight settings - you know you're sitting in something quite special here.

You also have BMW's iDrive system working in harmony with the entire vehicle to

ensure you're getting the best drive on whatever surface...although I wouldn't

suggest off-roading...

Welcome to the Mercedes E63 cabin. You'll find yourself sitting in rather nice

AMG Sports seats adorned in Alcantara Leather. One little problem we've found is that the steering is slightly offset to the left, meaning us larger people may find ourselves banging our elbows against the door...the Mercedes Command Infotainment isn't quite as user-friendly as the iDrive either, still cracking though!

Equipment for the M5 comes with Heated and Electric seats, front & rear parking sensors, cruise control, Bluetooth, Satnav, DAB Radio, Four-Zone Climate Control...many more but those are the big highlights for me.

The 63 comes with a bit more, with Mercedes being luxury and all. You're going to have Luxury Auto Climate Control, Fully Electric 'memory seats' (some seats would rather not remember certain things I expect...) Sat Nav and a blind-spot monitoring system, how’s that for safety?

VERDICT:

Both of these cars are quite simply fantastic. Which one would I chose? I've been thinking it through and I've decided should I have find myself with that sort of money, I'd take the M5. It just seems more fun, more sporty, bigger and chunkier on the road. If I was a bit older however, I may chose the Mercedes - but as a man in my 20's...well...bring on the M5.