All-new BMW 5 Serie sedan Photos courtesy of BMW
WOODCLIFF LAKE, NJ, Nov. 23 –BMW today officially introduced an all-new 5 series sedan that will go on sale in the United States next June.
The sixth generation sedan will join the previously announced BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo, a larger hatchback model with a roomier rear seat and some of the attributes of a sport-utility vehicle. It is due to go on sale in early spring.
(See video, below.)
While the new car is slotted between the 3 series and 7 series sedans, it has grown larger and now is built from the same platform as the flagship 7 Series.
It is 196.8 inches long, 74.8 inches wide and 61.4 inches high. The wheelbase is 120.9 inches long.
The styling has a family resemblance to the new 7 Series sedan, and is much more conservative than the controversial design of the current 5 Series sedan.
At introduction, the newest BMW will be offered with a choice of two new engines.
The 550i sedan will have a 4.4-liter, twin-turbo V-8 that produces 400 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque. It can propel the sedan from a stop to 60 mph in five seconds.
The 535i sedan will have a 3-liter, turbocharged, in-line six-cylinder engine that produces 300 horsepower and 300 pound-feet of torque. Although its output is identical, the new six-cylinder engine has a single turbocharger rather than the twin-turbo setup that now powers 3 and 5 series sedans.
Both models will be available with an eight-speed automatic transmission or a six-speed manual shifter. Initially all of the new cars will have rear-wheel drive, but an all-wheel-drive option will be introduced later.
Also to be introduced later is the BMW 528i, which will be powered by a normally aspirated 3-liter, in-line six-cylinder engine that produces 240 horsepower.
The independent suspension has been revised at the front and rear of the vehicle. An Adaptive Drive feature, available with the sport package, will allow the driver to adjust the suspension settings.
Inside, the sedan will have an even more upscale ambience than its predecessor.
Among its new many new high-tech features, the new sedan will feature brake-energy regeneration, which turns the alternator into a generator when the car is coasting or braking.
Among safety features to be offered will be a blind-spot warning system, lane-departure warning and BMW Night Vision with pedestrian detection.
More than five million 5 Series vehicles have been sold during the previous five generations.
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