Can a car excel at everything?

Author's Rating:

Pros: Styling, performance, handling, ride, refinement--just about everything

Cons: Front headrests block view of rear seat passengers, pricing

Reliability:
Build Quality
Roominess:
Seat Comfort:

The Bottom Line: 
An amazingly good car, and the price reflects this.

Author's Review
Once upon a time BMW focused on performance and handling when developing its cars. The styling of these cars was conservative and evolutionary, while their interiors were minimalist and largely devoid of gimmicks.

This began to change with the second-generation 7-series, introduced in 1987 as an early 1988 model. BMW realized that a tight focus on performance would not yield a successful large luxury sedan. So the new 7’s styling was much sleeker, its interior was more opulent, its ride was smoother, and it was chock full of features that seem tame now but at the time were innovative. One item I still remember: when reverse was selected, the right side mirror automatically tilted downward to provide a view of the curb. This increasing emphasis on luxury and innovative features picked up through the 1990s, especially following the arrival of Lexus in 1989. BMWs’ suspensions became known almost as much for ride quality as for their handling. The highly adjustable “comfort” seats developed for the larger models are perhaps the most comfortable in any car.

A more radical transformation began two years ago with the fourth-generation 7-Series. BMW’s American chief designer, Chris Bangle, executed a highly controversial design, with eyebrowed headlamps, full curvatures, complex surfaces, and a bustled trunk. I personally find the downward sweeping cutline for the last especially unattractive. The new car was distinctive, but few thought it beautiful. With the new 7’s interior BMW sought to reinvent how cars are controlled, with the transmission controlled by a dainty electronic column shifter and dozens of detailed climate control and sound system functions managed through an eight-way iDrive knob in conjuction with a flat panel display. Many including myself found this system unnecessarily complex and difficult to operate while driving. Reportedly some extremely frustrated buyers traded their new cars after only a few months. Finally, the new 7 included many technological innovations in its engine and suspension, BMW’s traditional foci. These included a novel valve control system that eliminated the traditional throttle plate while continuously varying valve lift and “active roll stabilization,” which twists the anti-roll bars to keep the car flat in turns. The new 7 performed better than such a large sedan had any right to, but this tended to be overshadowed by the controversial styling and iDrive.

The 7-Series is not crucial to BMW’s success. Relatively few are sold, and it serves as an image leader more than a profit generator. The midsize 5-Series is another matter. Though not as popular as the compact 3-Series, BMW sells a substantial number of 5s, such that its profitability is heavily affected by this model’s success. For the 2004 model year the 5 is updated in the mold of the 7. It adopts many of the 7’s innovations, and adds one of its own: Active Steering.

I’ve long felt that the steering in BMW sedans is too slow for my tastes. This steering is tuned for the autobahn, where steady steering is vital for control at high speeds. In America, however, such speeds are rarely if ever reached. Instead, we motor along at much slower speeds, where relatively quick steering both aids maneuverability and increases driving enjoyment. BMWs solution with the new 5 is to incorporate a planetary gearset in the steering column and through it vary the steering ratio based on vehicle speed. At lower speeds, the steering should be much quicker and livelier than in the standard system.

Will the new 5 prove equally controversial, or a huge success? I visited a dealer to find out. Ideally I would have driven a Sport Package equipped 530 with manual transmission. However, the dealers I contacted did not plan to order any manuals, and the one I ended up visiting had just sold its only Sport Package model. So I drove a regular 530i automatic.

BMW 5-Series Reliability

Want better reliability information? Want to really know what difference it will make if you buy a BMW 5-Series rather than something else? It's coming in the form of "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats. From these you might learn that your first choice, compared to your second choice, is likely to make 2.7 extra trips to the shop in its first five years. You might decide its advantages compensate for this, or you might not. Either way, you'll be able to make a much better informed decision.

To gain access to this information you have a choice: sign up to help provide the data now or pay $24.95 later. For the details, visit my website, www.truedelta.com.

Styling

I’m no fan of the 7-Series or Bangle’s gimmicky second effort, the Z4. The new 5, however, works for me. Its complex surfaces are considerably more dynamic and flowing than the 7's. The headlamps again have a strange shape—they might be likened to the eyes in ancient Egyptian portraits—but while the 7’s lamps suggested mass these suggest speed. At the rear the tail lamp outline continues the C-pillar’s downward sweep, risking a repeat of the 7’s no-no. However, this time a horizontal split between the white and red elements of the tail lamp’s lens continues the horizontal sweep of the strong character lines stamped into the car’s shoulders and thus prevents the eye from falling with that cutline. Among the available wheels the 525's look crudely blocky and the 545's overly frilly, but the 530's wheels and those that attend all three cars' sport packages contain five or seven tapered spokes and look appropriately sporty. The new 5's overall shape suggests speed, dynamic balance, and refinement. This design will stand the test of time much better than the 7 or especially the Z4.

The 5’s interior similarly avoids the mistakes within the 7. The iDrive is present, but its controls are simplified and the hood over its flat panel display is now far better integrated into the styling of the instrument panel. Where the symmetrical, standalone iDrive panel hood in the 7 lent the appearance of a second instrument binnacle, in the 5 it is asymmetrical and flows into the instrument binnacle. Mirroring the styling of the lower part of the instrument panel, it reinforces rather than detracts from BMW’s traditional cockpit-themed interior.

The door panels feature a pair of intersecting large radius arcs. One of these incorporates the door grab handle. This handle’s cross section is a hard edged for comfort. Even aesthetically the sharply defined edges of the door panels don’t quite mesh with the more organic forms of the instrument panel, but I’m picking nits here.

The 7’s controversial matte wood which lent the interior the character of fine Scandinavian furniture is not a choice with the 5. I liked it, but many did not. With the 5 interior trim choices are limited to “titanium,” a traditional brown glossy wooed, and a dark gray stained glossy maple. The first is standard with the six-cylinder models, the second with the eights.

When I first learned that the new 5 would get iDrive, I wondered how it would be packaged with a manual shifter. The answer: in the 5 the knob gets second billing to the shifter, which remains on the console even with the automatic transmission. This knob, four-way instead of eight-way, remains more complicated than conventional controls, but it’s a step in the right direction. (I’d still personally prefer conventional controls.) The seat controls return from the center console to the door, and remain simple to use (although those for the optional comfort seats might be another matter).

Overall the new interior is stylish yet both more conventional and more functionally and aesthetically successful than the 7's.

Accommodations

The 5 is meant for Goldilocks. Where the 7 feels a size or two too large for serious driving, and the 3 feels a bit tight for comfort, the new 5 is just right. From the driver’s seat the interior feels large enough for comfort but tight enough to feel connected with the car. Unlike in earlier BMWs, the instrument binnacle does not stick up high above the dash, affording a significantly more expansive view forward. I’ve long felt buried in BMW sedans’ interiors. With the new 5 the driving position approaches my ideal.

The lower instrument cluster slightly compromises the driver’s ability to quickly glance at the instruments during aggressive driving, but a fix is on the way. A head-up display (HUD) will be available later. GM has offered HUDs in some of its models for years. I once thought of them as a gimmick, but after sampling them in the Grand Prix and Corvette I’m a believer. BMW might not have a first here, not by a long shot, but second is good enough. The HUD both enables the lower cluster and will enable the driver to monitor engine and vehicle speed without ever taking his or her eyes off the road.

The regular seats are shaped well for support while cruising and engaging in moderately aggressive driving. Although I’d still prefer the more heavily bolstered sport seats, these were so much better than I expected that the sport seats did not seem a necessity. Four-way adjustable lumbar supports help. “Comfort” seats, now with 20-way adjustment, remain an option that I recommend despite their high price. Their name fits.

The rear seat is a less happy place. It is significantly roomier than in the old 5. In the past I’ve wondered whether the 5 was worth the extra money over the 3, as the difference in rear legroom between the two bordered on insignificant. Well, the difference is now significant. However, the rear passengers’ view forward is blocked by the front seats’ large headrests. I’m noticing this issue in more and more cars as sweeping rooflines force the rear seat cushion lower while safety concerns force headrests to grow. Thankfully the rear seat cushion is not so low that it fails to provide decent (though not great) thigh support. The new 5 can officially carry three people in its rear seat. The center position is high and narrow, however, so not even a child will be comfortable there. Also, carrying a fifth passenger denied the rear passenger the use of a large, comfortable fold-down armrest complete with cupholders. (It seems the Germans have fully accepted the need for cupholders; four are provided.) Heated seats are optional front and rear.

The high trunklid of the new 5 enables the trunk to grow from a tight 11 cubic feet to a much more competitive 14. Though most competitors continue to offer larger trunks, the 5’s is usefully regular in shape and can be further expanded with the option of folding rear seatbacks. Interior storage compartments are plentiful.

On the Road

If an American company put a 3.0-liter six in a 3500-pound sedan the results would be ludicrous. Mercedes and BMW, however, long ago mastered the art of moving heavy metal with moderately-sized engines. The base 5-series, like the previous model, gets by with a 184-horsepower 2.5-liter. This seems a bit small even given short tightly spaced transmission gearing, even if BMW does claim a zero-to-sixty time of about eight seconds. I suspect the 225-horsepower 3.0-liter, also carried over from the old car, will prove the most popular engine choice. A revised 325-horsepower 4.4-liter V8 borrowed from the 7 will also be available. At the time I drove the car only the 3.0 was available.

I last sampled this engine in the 5 with a manual tranmission. So equipped I found acceleration spirited enough to have fun but not so spirited that said fun was likely to get me in trouble. With the automatic the engine does not feel as strong. The quietness of the 5 also has an impact; this engine makes wonderful noises in smaller BMWs, but here it is much more muffled and this detracts from the joy of pushing it. Even with these limitations the larger six feels strong enough, especially once it reaches its 3500 RPM torque peak, that I suspect most drivers will be plenty satisfied with its performance. BMW claims a zero-to-sixty time of just under seven seconds. Beyond acceleration time, this three-liter produces a healthy amount of midrange torque, such that in normal driving it feels stronger than its ratings suggest. Don’t be swayed by the larger more powerful sixes in many Japanese competitors; at the level of the driving experience this one generally gets the job done.

All three of the new 5’s transmissions—a manual, a clutchless manual, and a manually shiftable automatic—contains six ratios, so the right ratio is always available whether the priority is acceleration or quiet and economical highway cruising. All three transmissions are available with all three engines.

The automatic in the car I drove was very smooth and kicked down promptly. It is manually shiftable by moving the shifter back and forth, the most common method but my least favorite. The transmission reacts quickly but not immediately, a bit better than average in this regard.

I hope to sample the other two transmissions in the future. A conventional manual would still be my preference. But the clutchless sequential manual gearbox (SMG), which until now has only been available in the high performance M3, sounds intriguing. It can do all of the shifting for you like a conventional automatic if so desired. In manual mode it can be shifted via steering wheel-mounted paddles or a manual-like shifter. The cost: $1,500. Reasonable since the conventional automatic runs $1,275. Why would anyone settle for the conventional automatic? To begin with, the SMG can only be ordered with the $3,300 sports package. But if you want the Sport Package anyway, what then? I hope to find out soon. The shifts are likely not as smooth, but for serious drivers that would be a small price to pay.

I have never been enamored with the 5’s handling. It has always felt balanced, and behaved very well when pushed hard along a curvy road, but I never felt nearly as connected with the car as I did with the smaller, lighter, altogether less distant 3-Series (which itself could be less distant in my book). The driving position was partly responsible, but the steering was the major culprit. Compared to the 3’s steering even the rack-and-pinion unit in six-cylinder 5-Series cars felt distant and imprecise. The recirculating ball system in the eight-cylinder 5s was even worse. I’m not saying these were bad systems—they were still significantly better than the average sedan’s—but I expected better from BMW.

For 2004 all 5s get rack-and-pinion steering. I hope to drive the Active Steering that comes with the Sport Package soon. But even the standard system in the 530 I drove was surprisingly good. Much more than in earlier 5s I felt directly connected to what the car was doing. It was extraordinarily easy to push this car hard through turns. The car consistently respond to steering inputs exactly as expected. Even after just a few minutes behind the wheel driving this car well became intuitive. Sure, I would have liked even crisper steering, but I’m extreme in this regard and this was the standard car.

What makes this handling even more surprising is it occurs in conjunction with exceptional ride quality. Potholes and bumps are fluidly absorbed with negligible impact on the car’s trajectory. Only the worst produced even a hint of harshness. I generally ignored them, picking a line and letting the suspension do its job. Noise levels are very low. When the Lexus LS first appeared its advantages in the areas of smoothness, quietness, and overall refinement shocked the German luxury car manufacturers. In the Lexus this smoothness came at the price of handling precision and driving enjoyment. BMW responded well to this challenge. For the past few years it has been the industry leader in simultaneously optimizing handling and ride quality. The new 5 takes this achievement to a new level, as it exceeds past 5s in driving enjoyment while at least matching Lexus in ride quality, quietness, and refinement--all without the cost, weight, and general complexity of an air suspension. Paying attention, Mercedes? Somehow the 5’s chassis feels both significantly more sporty and significantly more luxurious than that of the air-suspended E-Class. And this was with the base suspension. I honestly cannot wait to check out the Sport Package.

Pricing

For quick, up-to-date pricing, and especially user-specified price comparisons, check out the website I created: www.truedelta.com. Why yet another vehicle pricing website? Well, I personally lacked the patience to keep using the others. They were too slow and required too much effort, especially when trying to compare prices. So I taught myself some programming and created a site where there is no need to dig through option packages, prerequisites, and the like one by one -- the TrueDelta algorithm figures these out for you in one swift pass.

The following is from when the review was originally written:

Sadly, such excellence comes at a price. The new 5, roughly $2,000 more than last year, starts at just under $40,000 and climbs quickly from there. The 530’s extra half-liter costs $5,000, even though the manufacturing cost difference between the two sibling sixes cannot be significant. Adjusted for equipment differences the eight runs another five to six thousand (the higher number manual to manual).

Typically of German brands, the options seem highly overpriced. As before the split folding rear seat, standard in cheap Korean sedans, costs $475 here. The HUD is perhaps the worst offender. Not only will it costs $1,000, about three times its price in a GM product, but it will only be available with the $1,800 navigation system, which in turn requires the as yet unpriced rear seat DVD entertainment system. Based on how they’ve grouped the HUD with these options BMW must still see it as a piece of electronic gimmicky for the lazy luxury set. Me, I see it as a tool for the serious driver, who in many cases could not care less about a nav system or movies for rear seat passengers. I’d rather see it part of the Sport Package, even if this would further swell that package’s already high $3,300 price.

The Sport Package despite its high price seems among the more reasonably priced options, as it includes far more than in the past: dark exterior trim, a stiffer suspension, performance-oriented wheels/tires, sport seats, Active Roll Stabilization from the 7, and Active Steering. Perhaps there should be two (or even three) Sport Packages, one containing only a stiffer suspension, larger tires, and the sport seats, while a second includes the full list of features?

Add it all up and even the moderately optioned (Premium and Cold packages) 530i I drove neared $50,000. This is a little less than a similarly equipped Mercedes E-Class, but a Lexus GS 300, still a solid buy near the end of its cycle, will run about $8,000 less, and that’s before the discounts available on the Lexus but not the BMW. The price advantage of a Cadillac CTS is even larger, about $10,000 before the typical $1,500 discount (according to Edmunds) on the Cadillac. The BMW is a better car in just about every area, but the Cadillac is quite good, and $11,500 is a lot of money.

Last Words

The new 5 is better than I expected and a much better car than the already very good old 5 in just about every area. I hate to admit it as I never like to adhere to conventional wisdom, but the new 5 is likely the best sedan available for those who do not demand extreme amounts of horsepower and interior room. A shame the price reflects this.

To learn more about my reliability research and sign up to participate in it, visit www.truedelta.com.

Links to my reviews of related vehicles:
Audi A6
BMW 5-Series (2002)
BMW 745i
Cadillac CTS
Infiniti M45
Jaguar S-Type
Lexus GS 400
Mercedes E-Class