The urge of the M5 is immense, of course, because it has 552bhp and a comical 501lb ft of torque. It’s also surprisingly undramatic, because the new twin-turbo delivery is so linear. It’s undoubtedly been done this way for emissions reasons, which have also taken away two cylinders, but that’s fine by me. Once again, an obstacle is placed in the way of the car’s progress and it progresses more as a result.

Now we arrive at a great dichotomy. Do we want an event, or do we want effortless capability? They ought to go together, but somehow we think that the noisy Lambo is more involving, more demanding, more of a skill. Everything about the new M5 is disarming. The ride is good, the gearchanges are swift and painless, the cabin is quiet, and invaded only occasionally by a distant rumble of dynamic intent. I soon forget about M button #2 and leave everything as it is.