Volkswagen’s secretive W10 development programme reportedly relied on an unlikely test vehicle: a BMW M5 prototype modified to carry the experimental ten-cylinder engine.
Former Volkswagen Group chairman Ferdinand Piëch used the W10-powered M5 as his daily driver, according to a report by Carscoops. The car offered a discreet way to evaluate the powertrain outside a Volkswagen-bodied prototype.
The project reflects Piëch’s reputation for ambitious engineering programmes and for pushing the Volkswagen Group to explore unusual technical solutions. A BMW sedan carrying a Volkswagen engine would have concealed the experiment in plain sight while providing a usable real-world development platform.
The W10 never became a defining Volkswagen Group production engine, but the M5 prototype stands as a notable artefact from an era when the company pursued increasingly complex multi-cylinder powertrains. Its connection to Piëch gives the car significance beyond its unusual mechanical combination.
