It suits four adults who want to cover hundreds of kilometres in a day and still step out feeling fresh. Alongside it in the Masons car hire fleet is the M5 Manhart; this blue M5 is the unmodified factory version, quieter and better suited to a trip with family, colleagues or clients. The boot takes four medium-sized suitcases, so nothing has to travel on the back seats.

What the M5 Competition is good for

The most common plan is a trip to Austria for four: leave Prague on Friday morning, reach a lake in the Salzkammergut by the afternoon, spend two days on excursions and drive back on Sunday. There is room in the back for two adults, the suitcases go in the boot, and the car holds a steady motorway pace that leaves nobody stiff at the end.

The second scenario is a business trip with colleagues or a partner: a meeting in Brno, Linz or Munich and back the same evening. With four doors, rear passengers simply climb in, with no front seats to fold. On arrival it fits an ordinary multi-storey car park, and outside a client's office it does not look like something off a racetrack.

The third is a mountain trip outside the main season, say late October or April, when Alpine roads are icy in the morning and dry by the afternoon. All-wheel drive gives confidence on wet, cold stretches. In Austria, winter equipment is compulsory from November to mid-April whenever there are wintry conditions on the road; check which tyres will be fitted when you book.

In practice: seats, luggage and drive

There are two individual seats in front and a three-seat bench in the back. For a drive of several hours, four adults is the most comfortable load; a fifth person fits for a shorter run, such as from the airport to a hotel. The rear doors are large, so older passengers get in without difficulty. The boot holds four medium-sized suitcases, and backpacks and jackets go by the rear passengers' feet.

All-wheel drive splits power between both axles, so there is nothing to switch over in motorway rain or on wet mountain roads. The M5 is a big saloon: rather than weaving through the narrow streets of the Old Town and Malá Strana, use a car park on the edge of the centre or a P+R. Take old underground garages slowly, as their ramps tend to be narrow. The engine is a 4.4-litre twin-turbo petrol V8 with 625 hp. A relaxed pace makes a tank last; a brisk one means more fuel stops, though filling stations on the way to Austria are plentiful.

Where to take the M5 Competition from Prague

The Salzkammergut lake district is about 4.5 hours from Prague via České Budějovice and Linz, then along the Austrian A1 motorway towards Salzburg. At Mondsee, turn off for the Wolfgangsee, where St. Gilgen or St. Wolfgang are worth a stop for the lake views. From there the road runs through Bad Ischl to Hallstatt; leave the car in the car park outside the village, as the centre is closed to visitors' cars. This route shows what the M5 is hired for: long motorway stretches at a steady pace, then a relaxed drive between the lakes with four people and luggage. You need a vignette for Austrian motorways, so buy it before the border. Taking the car out of the Czech Republic must be agreed with the manager in advance.

M5 Competition or M5 Manhart?

Both cars are F90-generation M5s with all-wheel drive; they differ in purpose. The blue M5 Competition is the factory version for travelling: a quieter exhaust, a calmer character and room for four people and their suitcases, so it works for a holiday, a business meeting or collecting your parents from the airport. The M5 Manhart is grey, tuned to 720 hp according to fleet data, with carbon-ceramic brakes and a louder downpipe exhaust. Take it for a day when the driving itself is the main event, ideally with a friend who knows tuning. For a family trip to the Alps, the blue one is the sensible pick.