BMW to Bring New High-Performance M5 and M6 Cars to U.S.

GENEVA – BMW will bring its M5 and M6 high-performance cars to the U.S. this fall, virtually assuring the market will continue to be the largest consumer of BMW’s M models.

U.S. customers account for 45% of M volume, says spokesman Stefan Behr. China, which has become the largest market for a number of global auto makers, is No.2. BMW sold 19,000 M-branded vehicles worldwide last year, a 12.8% improvement.

The M3 coupe, convertible and sedan models are big sellers already, and the only version of the BMW 1-Series to come to the U.S. was the M1 coupe, which was a sellout last fall. The X5M and X6M also are on the market now.

Together, they accounted for more than 9,000 sales in 2011, Behr says. And with the M5 and M6, BMW expects to surpass 10,000 units this year.

One car that won’t be coming to the U.S. is the BMW M550d xDrive, a 381-hp 3.0L inline-6 diesel with three turbochargers – two small and one large.

 The first small turbo kicks in at acceleration and the big one at 1,500 rpm. At 2,700 rpm, the second small turbo contributes its additional pressure to keep high torque available longer. Maximum torque is 546 lb.-ft. (740 Nm).

While the engine meets European diesel-exhaust norms with an oxides-of-nitrogen trap, in North America it would require an extra aftertreatment. The engine has the same performance as its predecessor, 0-62 mph (100 km/h) in 4.7 seconds, but fuel consumption is reduced to 37 mpg (6.4 L/100 km).

BMW presents several variants of its new 3-Series, its most-important car at the show. These include the all-wheel-drive F30 xDrive and a special AC Schnitzer edition, the ACS3.

BMW Chairman Norbert Reithofer says the ActiveHybrid 3 will arrive this fall in Europe, the first full hybrid in its segment. The new 5-Series will reach its first markets later this month.

BMW also introduces its Series Gran Coupe coming to market in June. Its 450-hp engine gets 27 mpg (8.7 L/100 km). And the M6 Coupe, which makes 560 hp and gets 24 mpg (9.8 L/100 km) on the European test cycle, a 30% improvement over its predecessor.