2010 BMW 5 Series: First Look

Jay Williams - 24/November/2009

Munich, Germany - BMW has released details of its new 5 Series line up which will go on sale in Europe after the Geneva motor show and will join Australian dealerships by mid 2010.

BMW's new 5 Series looks like the love child of a 7 Series and a 3 series BMW. The 5 Series has similar headlights and rear tail lights to the smaller 3 Series, while the overall length and wheel base are like the 7 Series. 

Visually the 5 Series features the trade mark BMW kidney grille, the bonnet has a muscular chiselled look, the sides of the car are sleek and free flowing while the rear of the vehicle is beefy.

The BMW 5 Series comes with Dynamic Driving Control which enables the driver to set the suspension to his/her personal requirements. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan is also available with Adaptive Drive encompassing Dynamic Damper Control and Dynamic Drive Stability Control, as well as BMW’s Integral Active Steering.

BMW 5 Series engine options include:
- One eight-cylinder and three six-cylinder petrol engines.
- Two six-cylinder diesels and a four-cylinder turbodiesel with an aluminium crankcase and common-rail direct injection.

The base 520d coming to Australia gets the 137kw/380Nm 4-cylinder diesel, capable of 4.16 litres/100km while emitting just 132g/km CO2.

Sitting at the top of the range, the BMW 550i comes with an eight-cylinder, boasting BMW TwinPower Turbo Technology and High Precision Injection which has a maximum output of 300 kW and 6000Nm of torque. The 550i can sprint from 0-100km/h in five seconds, before hitting a limited top speed of 250km/h.

A new eight-speed gearbox is standard on the 550i and optional on all other models. It comes in both traditional and paddle-shift forms and improves fuel efficiency by 6%.

The BMW 5 Series range features a leather interior, fully-automatic climate control and sound system with Bluetooth phone integration, while all but the 520d get USB audio interface and ambient lighting.

BMW has a large list of optional features to suit most buyers, from comfort to performance and safety.

Park assist locates a suitable park for 5 Series and navigates itself into that space with the driver only having to accelerate and brake. Four-wheel Integral Active Steering helps the process, reducing the turning circle by 0.5 metres, while the Surround View and Reversing Assist systems incorporate cameras from all over the car (including the wing mirrors and wheel arches) to provide a 360 degree view of what’s around the car.

Safety features range from head-up display to night vision, information and warnings about pedestrians, lane changes and departures and speed limiting, while four optional sports packages see the 5 Series gain 19-inch alloys, sports seats and steering wheel and adaptive, xenon, high-beam assisted headlamps.

Pricing for the 5 Series should start from around around $78,000 for the 520d and $175,000 for the 550i. Official pricing and specification details will be announced closer to launch.

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