Take five!

With the new 5-series, it’s pretty clear that BMW’s management is taking on the competition head-on. It will appeal to a much wider audience, with comfort, space, easy driving and ride quality prioritised. And this suits the requirements of Indian customers just fine, as most cars in this class are chauffeur-driven anyway. But how well does the new Five play this new role?

Style file

BMW’s new 5-series shares much of its platform with its larger sibling. The car features the same ‘back to its roots’ styling and you can honestly recognise this as a BMW, even without the badges. The wide kidney grille, the double-barrel headlamps, the long bonnet, the tight-fitting roof, the kink in the rear door and the wide but subtly flared wheel arches — it has them all. The proportions are similar to the two generations-older E39 5-series, and there’re bits and pieces from the 3-series and other BMW models. All things considered, I think this interpretation of BMW’s styling cues works really well.

While the new Five is built on the same platform as the 7-series, the wheelbase is shorter by 100mm here. At 2968mm it’s still very long though, probably the longest in its class, which is great news for space-conscious car buyers. BMW has also transferred a whole bunch of high-tech stuff like Dynamic Driving Control, which allows you to choose between Normal, Sport and Sport+ and alter throttle responses, steering feel and automatic gearbox operation, from the 7-series to this car. However, the Variable Damper Control (VDC), Adaptive Drive (active anti-roll bars) and Integral Active Steer (rear-wheel steering) are missing in the Indian variant.

Unlike the earlier 5-series the doors in this series, for the first time, are made of aluminium and as a result lack that impressive solid ‘thud’. The biggest change, however, is that this car gets an electric power-steering system in an effort to improve the overall efficiency of the car. Run-flat tyres remain, and you still don’t get the extra security and peace of mind that comes from having a spare.

Inside story

BMW breaks no new ground with the interiors of the new 5-series. The design is so similar to the Seven, it’s actually difficult to tell them apart. Still, there is a plush feel to the insides and though designers have shown a considerable amount of restraint for new shapes and forms, elements like the joystick-style gear selector and the iDrive dial make things interesting.

The steering wheel on the new Five is chunky, the round dials are clear and there is an interesting horizontal display screen at the bottom of the instruments — a nice touch. The design of the central console can be slotted seamlessly into any large BMW from the last decade and, as ever, the horizontal buttons look good. However, they are a touch too small and can be fiddly to use when the car is on the move. The quality of plastics is impressive while the functionality of the buttons and the iDrive is first-rate.

Seat comfort is fantastic. The front seats are large, thigh and shoulder support is very good and you could be well over six feet and still be very comfortable. Rear seat space is even better. The new Five, however, lacks the phenomenal thigh support of the earlier 5-series and the large front seats obscure the view ahead as well.

Under the hood

The new three-litre straight six under the bonnet brings together some of BMW’s best high-tech features. There’s a new Valvetronic adjuster that reduces inertia and reaction times to one-tenth of what they used to be, direct injection that allows the motor to produce huge amounts of torque at absurdly low engine speeds and a single turbo divided into twin scrolls that delivers instant responses.

Driver's deal

Caress the throttle — it needs nothing more than 3000rpm — and the motor feels extremely smooth and well-balanced. The hard-working ZF eight-speed automatic gearbox clicks up a couple or three gears as soon as you lift off the throttle pedal, and the battery gets topped up on overrun.

But flatten the accelerator and the gearbox snaps the motor to attention, the tachometer needle popping up like a jack-in-the-box. It can plummet directly from eighth gear to second, and the motor now takes on a hard-edged snarl as the big Five reels in the road. Because the gearbox allows you to access full power in an instant, you are pinned back in your seat and held there as the motor winds past 7000rpm. The full-bore launches are not for the faint-hearted.

Acceleration from rest takes you to 100kph in one seamless rush. Three seconds, 7000rpm, second gear, count to three again and you’re past 100kph. That’s 100kph in 6.1 seconds. Keep the throttle pinned down another six seconds and you’ll snarl past 140kph!

And the pace is devastating — you go from a cruising speed of 110kph to 150kph in less than seven seconds if you flatten the throttle. What makes all this power so accessible is that this car comes with the sport version of the automatic, which is even faster in Sport and Sport+. And the lovely paddle shifts help you chop up the power in an instant.

Light on its feet and willing to change direction, the new Five likes to corner too. The brakes have tremendous stopping power and the big Five sheds speed rapidly. It rolls a bit on turn-in initially, but quickly settles down and then grips and goes. The steering has a reasonable amount of weight and accuracy is pin-sharp, but there is some amount of artificial feel in the system.

Ride comfort though is shockingly good. The suspension is supple over bumps, it remains almost silent over the worst ruts and holes, and road noise is very hushed. There is, however, some amount of bobbing at high speeds and the Five does not ride as flat as an E-class. And the long wheelbase and relatively low ground clearance mean you have to take a bit of care over large bumps.

Final verdict

BMW has set the new 5-series a formidable challenge by making it much more of a luxury car. Those who want a plush ride, those who want acres of space for rear seat passengers and owners who want very high levels of refinement will all be thrilled with the new Five.

On the other hand, despite the lighter electric steering, this is also one of the best driver’s cars in its class and comes powered by one of the finest engine and gearbox combos around. Performance is strong enough to embarrass a sports car, handling is crisp and the car is fun to drive. What more can you ask for?

Spec check

BMW 535i

Price: Rs 58 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)

Engine: Petrol/ front, longitudinal/6-cyls in-line, 2979cc, turbo-charged/ rear wheel drive

Power: 306bhp at 5800rpm

Torque: 40.78kgm at 1200-5000rpm

Gearbox: 8-speed automatic

Weight: 1685kg

Suspension (F/R): Independent, double track control arm axle with separate lower arm level, anti-dive/ independent, integral-V multi-arm axle, anti-squat, anti-dive

Brakes (F/R): 348mm ventilated discs/ 345mm ventilated discs


The Personal Telegraph