One Of BMW’s Greatest M Cars Nearly Got A V6
The E39 launched not long after BMW contemplated ditching the M division in the US
https://www.carscoops.com/author/bradcarscoops-com/
by Brad Anderson
BMW considered a turbo inline-six and even a V6 for the E39 M5.
Development delays and high costs forced it to abandon those plans.
The M62 V8 served as the basis for the now-legendary S62 engine.
Not every car enthusiast agrees on which BMW M5 generation stands above the rest, but the E39 often takes the crown. Its balanced proportions, naturally aspirated V8, and understated design have earned it near-universal respect, even decades after its debut.
What makes its legacy more compelling is how narrowly it avoided becoming something altogether different. During its development, there were serious discussions about powering it with a turbocharged inline-six or, even more surprisingly, a V6. That version of the M5 never made it past the drawing board, and for that, many are grateful.
See: BMW’s Best 5-Series Almost Looked Like Something Else Entirely
When it came time to develop the E39 M5, BMW of North America wasn’t even sure if it would continue selling M models in the United States. The E28 M5 had proven to be a huge success, but the E34 didn’t generate the same enthusiasm.
What changed the tide was BMW’s decision to offer the E36 M3 in the US with a different engine, which reaffirmed the company’s commitment to the American market and led to the decision to bring the E39 M5 stateside as well.
A Crossroads in Engineering
In a 50-year retrospective, BMW North America revealed just how many directions the E39 M5 could have gone. At the time, Karlheinz Kalbfell, then head of BMW’s M division, seriously considered both a turbocharged inline-six and a V6 before settling on the now-iconic S62 V8.
“Kalbfell believed that the heart and soul of BMW was the inline six-cylinder, and that’s what he wanted as the image leader for BMW, not a V8,” recalled Rich Brekus, then Head of Product Planning for BMW NA. “I guess he saw the V8 as an American thing, too large and wasteful, but I don’t think anyone could figure out how to have better performance with a six than what they had with the S38.”
That assessment was grounded in reality. The 3.8-liter six-cylinder used in the previous E34 had reached its developmental limit, and BMW was convinced that the next M5 needed a different engine. According to E39 M5 Project Leader, Alex Hildebrandt, the team considered both a turbocharged six and a possible V6, but neither option was ideal.
However, developing a high-performance sixer better than the old S38 was going to be extremely difficult and costly, especially for a car that would be sold in relatively limited numbers.
“They certainly tried, considering not only a turbocharged inline six but a V6, which would have been a total outlier within the BMW engine universe,” BMW said. According to Hildebrandt, “In the end, the company was not prepared to spend the money to develop an engine for only 2-3,000 cars a year. So this idea was buried, but we’d lost two years of development, a lot of time.”
Settling on the V8
After a lengthy debate, Kalbfell eventually conceded that a V8 was “the best technical solution for the M5, and that such an engine would suit the car’s character, too”.
“We wanted to create a sports car for gentlemen, and the V8 was a natural choice,” explained Hildebrandt. “In the end, it was the only choice to bring the car to market in a reasonable time. We were two years behind a regular development process, and if we had gone even later, there would have been no profit in the project.”
To make the V8 that would go on to power the E39, BMW’s engineers took the old M62, increased the displacement, added new porting, and raised the redline. It also developed a new intake system with dual throttle bodies and an upgraded oil system.
In hindsight, the move to a V8 was not only logical but inspired. The S62 engine is still regarded as one of BMW’s finest, delivering the kind of smooth, linear power that helped define the E39 M5’s character. It’s part of what makes this M5 more than just a product of its time; it’s a benchmark that continues to shape how we think about sport sedans.
John Halas contributed to this story.
