Uncharted territory: Creating IND’s first F10 M5 Portfolio Project
Perhaps the effect will wear off in time, but for now seeing an F10 M5 in the flesh feels like peering into a toy store. For our client Tom, who has already brought several of his cars to us for some special touches, even a stock twin-turbo super sedan cannot be left untouched. Tom has been an ardent BMW enthusiast since medical school, jumping right into the fray with a supercharged E36 M3. Today, with his X5M having departed, we knew this new replacement would have to really turn heads.
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Despite the power output of his new M5 topping even his R8 V10 right out of the box, Tom felt that both sound and output could be improved, so of course we happily obliged with the recently-introduced Eisenmann Sport rear section exhaust system for some added throatiness. This was ordered specially with the rare oval tip option, which will further distinguish this particular F10 from its peers. To make these fit properly, the exhaust was combined with the innovative Eisenmann rear diffuser painted gloss black for sharp contrast with the Alpine White body color.
Matching the rear diffuser is a gloss black Revinora front lip, which fills in the lower end of the bumper for an OEM Plus look. We added IND’s Cosmetic Package, including custom painted gloss black front grilles and side grilles in Alpine White with light LED tint. Our rear spoilers with CRT theme have gained popularity quite rapidly, and we installed a lightweight one from BMW Performance with an Alpine White stripe setting off the carbon fiber perfectly. Rather than leave the existing rear M5 trunk badge chrome, gloss black paint was applied to again bring relief against the light-colored body.
Stance and handling have always been an integral foundation of any project we undertake, and the new F10 is no exception. The factory wheels were swapped with a gorgeous set of BBS RE in 20×9.5 front and 20×10.5 rear, painted silver, which singlehandedly changed the presence and feel of the car. The proper ride height was achieved with a new Variant 3 coilover kit from KW specifically designed for the F10 M5. These come with an EDC delete module that eliminates any errors caused by disconnecting the original BMW EDC dampers.
In addition to providing many levels of damping with respect to compression and rebound, the F10 M5 coilovers supply mildly progressive springs while maintaining optimum shock travel. For compliant ride comfort, custom bump stops are used, and ride height has a wide range of adjustment to obtain the best possible stance. We never tire of the colorful purple and yellow used by KW, and the fit and finish quality is absolutely world class as always. Even more importantly, confidence is inspired by the relentless amount of testing and calibration done by the engineers at KW, from their state-of-the-art computer simulated environments and test rigs to world-renowned race circuits such as the Nurburgring and beyond.
Our client and friend Tom now has an F10 M5 that is not only set apart from any other on the road today, but also can hold its head high when parked alongside any of his other cars. Standing out next to something like an R8 is a difficult prospect for virtually any car, but we all feel proud that this new M5 has been improved well beyond OEM while staying within BMW’s amazing engineering standards. We here at IND consider ourselves fortunate to have been able to enhance such an iconic new machine!
