Well, it's the 2012 BMW M5 concept anyway (of a car we already drove!). BMW held a private unveil of the BMW M5 concept to a select few journalists in Munich, Germany this week and somehow these shots leaked out.

If, say, BMW invites you to ride in a new BMW M5 on a Swedish lake, the cynic in you might expect one of those shambolic "passenger" rides where the hapless journalist attempts to glean something of use riding shotgun.

The 2011 BMW M5's twin-turbocharged 540-hp V8 is rumored to be mated only to a manumatic transmission and these exclusive spy images inside the cockpit do nothing to quiet those whispers. Does this mean the ultimate driving machine is dead?

The 2011 BMW M5 causes mischief wherever it goes, whether on the pages of Car and Driver or here, on the Nürburgring, throwing up tire smoke as the rumored twin-turbo V8 lays down some rubber.