India-bound BMW M5 facelift spied up close

• The changes aren’t radical but more than usual BMW’s facelifts 

• No, the grille isn’t increased in size, but the headlamps are redesigned 

It might feel yesterday but it’s been almost two years since the new-gen BMW M5 broke cover. So it doesn’t come as a surprise that BMW has started testing the mid-life update for the performance saloon. Our spy sleuths caught the test prototype sitting next to the current-gen model at BMW’s testing facility at the Nurburgring giving us a fair idea of what changes are hiding underneath. 

We’ll start off with the grille. Even though the camouflage does a good job of concealing the finer details, we are happy to see the grille hasn’t gone bonkers as seen on the new 7 Series and the upcoming M4. There seems to be some tweak there but the overall layout is more or less unchanged. Then there are the redesigned headlamps. They are slimmer compared to the current one and get a new lighting signature akin to the one seen on the new 7 Series. 

We also expect some changes to the bumpers upfront which will be in line with the upcoming M3. At the rear, a new signature in the LED taillamps are also seen but we’d have loved if the shape would have been tweaked to make it look like the one on the 8 Series Gran Coupe. The cabin will be updated with newer features, revised infotainment system and added equipment. Other changes might be revealed once the covers drop. 

There are rumours of a revived LCI version coming with the update and we could also get the new M5 CS which will sit on already-hot Competition version. The twin-turbo V8 will be tweaked to push out more firepower and there might be changes under the skin as well to make the new M5 furthermore potent. 

The updated 5 Series sedan is expected to arrive as early as the first half of 2020. This performance version might promptly follow so it’s still quite sometime before we get to see the updated M5 super saloon.