The new BMW M5 CS is the most powerful BMW M car ever

The new limited-production BMW M5 CS is the most powerful car ever made by BMW M, and is much lighter and faster than its sibling, the M5 Competition.

At a glance, the M5 CS has taken a nod to BMW's GT race cars, with BMW's Laserlight headlights getting a yellow tint, when low or high beam is activated. You will also find an M5 CS badge adorning the iconic kidney grille with Goldbronze material surrounding it.

There are three matt paint options to choose from - Brands Hatch Grey metallic, Frozen Brands Hatch Grey metallic and Frozen Deep Green metallic, all of which make this car stands out in the crowd.

The M5 CS has undergone a weight loss regime, and it is now 70KG lighter than the M5 competition. Thanks in part to the use of Carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) found on the front splitter, exterior mirror caps, rear spoiler and diffuser, engine compartment cover, as well as on the intake silencer.

The dieting continues into the interior. You get carbon fibre bucket seats up front and two individual rear seats, as well as an Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel with carbon fibre paddle shifters.

The interior is full of ultra-sporty design elements. There are Mugello Red accents on all four seats, an outline of the legendary Nürburgring circuit emblazoned on the head rests, and "CS" badging on the instrument panel and between the bucket-style seats in the rear.

Under the hood lurks the 4.4-litre V8 engine with BMW M TwinPower Turbo technology. The M5 CS may have retained the M5's torque figures of 750Nm, but it now belts out an impressive 635 horsepower, 10 more than the M5 Competition, and the most powerful BMW M car ever built.

The M5 CS disposes of the century sprint in just 3.0 seconds. Lay into the throttle and you will reach 200km/h in 10.3 seconds, and hit its electronically-limited top speed of 305km/h easily.

The M5 CS retains the M5's 8-speed M Steptronic gearbox and xDrive system that lets you switch between All-Wheel Drive and pure Rear-Wheel Drive.

It'll also come standard with a quad-tipped stainless-steel sports exhaust system as standard, along with M Carbon ceramic brakes with Red callipers.

BMW M will be offering the M5 CS as part of a limited-run special edition line up. It will be going on sale this spring 2021 in Germany; projected to be priced at €180,400 (est. S$290,600).

This article was first published in Motorist.