Categories: Cars

Look Back at M Origins With BMW Group Classic’s E28 M5

The new M5 is making waves – big ones – for its hybrid powertrain, exciting new Touring variant, and perhaps most of all, its seemingly larger-than-life weight. That’s far from where the M5’s roots are, though. And, thanks to BMW Group Classic, we get a look exactly that: an expertly-maintained and pristinely-preserved E28 M5, the first to wear the badge.

A Real Ultimate Driving Machine

The new M5 is fast and furious, and to that end it certainly does justice to the M5s before it. The E28 M5 entered production at the end of 1984 and arguably pioneered the high-performance luxury sedan segment. Building on the precedent of the M535i before it, BMW stuffed a 282-horsepower 3.5-liter inline-six engine under the hood. It propelled the “limousine” from zero to 60 mph in around 6.5 seconds, and could hit speeds of up to 245 km/h (152 mph). The M88 engine under the hood shares much with two other pretty iconic cars: the M1, and the M635i CSi (“sharknose”). Cars produced for the US and Canada ended up with a slightly different engine, the S38, which sported a catalytic converter.

Under the Radar

One of the coolest features about the E28 M5 is that it really doesn’t look all that much different from a regular 5 Series of the day. Unless you knew what you were looking at – or popped the hood and noticed the ITBs – you likely had no idea it was one of the fastest cars in the world at the time. The only body panels unique to the E28 M5 are an undertray, front air dam, and the rear-view mirror housings, and of course M5 badging and wheels. But again – you’re a few badges and a wheel/tire swap away from effectively being the ultimate sleeper.

Making the E28 M5 even more anonymous is the fact that effectively all US models came with the same paint and interior colorway. Black over Natur (tan) was the way, largely due to the fact that the car was hand-assembled and the relative complexities associated with that. While a few Black-on-black cars (Ford would be proud) made it through production (since Canada did eventually offer the choice of upholstery to shoppers), almost all North American cars were the same black over Natur. 101 cars in North America ended up with a black interior of the 1,340 produced for the region. Total E28 M5 production? Just 2,241 for the world.

Thanks to BMW Group Classic for preserving a truly legendary vehicle. Although I must admit: it would’ve been nice to see something other than black over black. Being based in the US, I’d love to see something wild from the factory that we never got, like a Pacific Blue interior. Either way, we’re fortunate to have a look at what is arguably the most important M car in history – the first-ever M5.

[Photos: BMW Classic]