UPDATE as of 5/2/11: According to
Autocar, BMW official have now acknowledged that a 4-wheel-drive model of the new F10 M5 is being prepared for eventual production. The AWD F10 M5 will join the standard RWD M5 as an additional model and should be good news for those who live in snowy climates.
Original Post from 4/7/11:
Many speculated that a AWD
F10 M5 was possible in the works when BMW released the
promo videos of the new M5 undergoing serious snow testing. It appears there may indeed possibly be an F10 M5 xDrive version sometime in the future.
In an interview with
Autocar, BMW M's head of research and development, Albert Biermann, indicated that “
There will be some all-wheel-drive surprises on M cars in the future," apparently to satisfy demand from the US's snow belt. This would represent the first time that the M5 come in a xDrive variant.
The only transmission details released so far for the concept F10 M5 is that it uses a Getrag 7-speed M DCT with M Drivelogic and has an Active M Differential, and standard RWD.