Not that it would stop us one way or the other, but it would be interesting to know which of these two manufacturers was most and least happy to see this unexpected coupling appearing on the same roads and in the same pictures. Surely you’d say BMW would have better grounds to be glad to see its latest fast Five go up against true British automotive royalty? A determinedly premium product seen as a rival to something equally firmly entrenched in the luxury sector costing more than twice the price.
Or perhaps not. Perhaps Bentley will not be put out at all to see its grandest, most traditional road car keeping pace with another that has one of the greatest nameplates of all time fastened to its boot lid. Bentley may not race any more, it may pump out more SUVs than any other kind of car, but it is still keen to remind people it has not forgotten its sporting roots, that it sent its cars out to race before even sending them out to customers, and comparison with a BMW M5 will do no harm in restating its sporting instincts.
On the other hand, maybe BMW will hate its most potent saloon being compared to something that might rightly be thought of as a limousine; and maybe Bentley will be none too chuffed to see its blueblood forced to leave the royal box to brawl with the mass produced down in the cheap seats.
