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Absurdity from Bavaria comes in many forms these days. Be it the new BMW M3’s wild looks, or the outstanding driving capabilities of the BMW M2. However, if you’re truly looking for the wildest BMW made today, you’ll be finding yourself in the driver’s seat of the $142,000 2022 BMW M5 CS.

It’s not a bad place to be, to say the least. That’s especially true once you’ve seen one on the road, sticking out like a 627 hp sore thumb.

The M5 CS is how much?!

A diagram showing a host of changes made to the BMW M5 CS
BMW made a lot of changes for the 2022 BMW M5 CS | BMW

Unfortunately, you did read that right. The M5 CS is no bargain performance sedan you can daily drive. It is however, going to be a great deal when no one is willing to fix one in ten years time. See you on Bring A Trailer. Regardless, the CS is the perfect illustration of what BMW is capable of in the here and now.

Sure, a world of electric sedans and Mustang SUVs is the future, but the 2022 BMW M5 CS shows that the Bavarians aren’t letting go so easily. While the CS may not be a bargain performance sedan you can daily, it is a prohibitively expensive and stylish rocket ship that looks like nothing else on the road. And for that, we love it.

An M5 CS is faster than an 800 hp Hellcat

A diagram showing changes like standard Pirelli P Zero tires on the 2022 BMW M5 CS
BMW made a host of changes to the M5 Competition for the CS model | BMW

It would appear we aren’t the only ones, either. Both Thomas and James from ThrottleHouse ranked the M5 above the Hellcat after Dodge’s drag race king was dethroned by it (money no object, of course). Then again, how could the M5 not take the Hellcat in a straight line? It’s both lighter, at 4,016 lbs, and has AWD. Yes, that’s heavy, but James did credit the M5 with driving “almost like an M2,” which, being BMW’s best-driving car in decades, comes as high praise.

Unfortunately, there’s no manual transmission in the new M5. That got the axe back in 2016. However, the 8-speed ZF automatic gearbox does the job perfectly well. Honestly, a lot of that win against the Hellcat comes from the speedy gear changes offered by the automatic gearbox. All the performance is well and good, but it’s useless if you can’t use the thing.

Is the 2022 BMW M5 CS worth the money?

The matte green 2022 BMW M5 CS shot from the front 3/4
The 2022 BMW M5 CS | BMW

Thankfully, the 2022 BMW M5 CS is a perfectly usable car, as Thomas and James point out. It is a sedan after all. The trunk is perfectly usable, and so too are the back seats. The M5 also gets seats that are suspiciously similar to those in the M3 and M4. Happily, those are perfectly comfortable. Finally, there’s the obvious key to year-round usability: AWD. In short, the 2022 BMW M5 CS will be a hell of a performance bargain after depreciation has had its way with it. We can’t wait.

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