NY Times Unhappy with BMW M5 and M6 Driving Experience

The New York Times is the latest automotive publication to roll out a review of the 2013 M5 sedan and M6 coupe and convertible. Despite the laundry list of technology, a huge improvement in performance and gas mileage the M5 and engine/drive train sibling M6 continue to take the driver out of the driving experience.

Faster but Not So Furious, M Cars Slide Into Maturity

but these M’s seem to approach the outer limits of usable — especially when they only intermittently engage their driver.

One thing I never thought I’d say in my lifetime: a Mercedes, specifically the E63 AMG, whose outlaw attitude would seem well matched to a young billionaire soccer club owner, is a charming, fried-rubber yahoo compared with these BMWs.

Viewed in a vacuum, these M’s still rock the road. But in an expanding performance universe, BMW ought to question its course of making warp-speeders that shorten trips between planets but leave the drivers in suspended animation. People don’t buy fast cars to make better time, but to make their time better.

Read the full review on nytimes.com and let us know what you think. Have the M5 and M6 matured to the point of being stodgy?