BMW M5 vs BMW M2

Now a plug-in hybrid, the redesigned 2025 BMW M5 is a versatile, high-performance sedan that allows drivers to have their cake and eat it, too. It may put out 717 horsepower — and certainly feels like it — but the M5’s repertoire also includes a calming all-electric driving experience for up to 43 kilometres, which also makes this version the most efficient M5 ever.

Verdict: The new BMW M5 boasts impressive speed, agility, and daily usability. It's not perfect: the exhaust is too quiet for a performance vehicle and its ride is too harsh for a luxury car. But for the shopper who wants a sedan capable of doing a bit of everything, the M5 delivers in excess.

To automotive enthusiasts, a sports car like the 2023 BMW M2 is special. The modern car market is marching away in multiple directions from the purist driving experience. Be it autonomy or electrification, that driver-meets-car connection you get from a rear-wheel-drive drivetrain, straight-six internal-combustion performance machine is feeling more and more like an endangered species.

Safety and creature comforts mean bigger, heavier cars. For a brand like BMW, the M2 is one of the last cars in its lineup that is even remotely close to the cars that put it on the map, like the legendary E30 M3. The 2023 BMW M2 has been completely redesigned, and it’s a more focused performance machine with bolder styling. It’s not the semi-sleeper that it once was. Is this more athletic, boisterous personality for the better?