REVIEW: BMW 5-Series GT Is A 5 Estate & X6 Put Together

REVIEW: BMW 5-Series GT Is A 5 Estate & X6 Put Together

This is the car that you never knew you needed, unless you’ve always hankered after a 5-series saloon, estate and X5 all rolled into one. The 5-series GT has, according to BMW, no direct competitors and if you think the 535 petrol and 530 diesel versions are niche products, then this range-topping 550 should be even more exclusive.

What it amounts to is a halfway house between executive car and SUV. It is 8cm higher than most saloons, with a coupe-like roofline and side window graphic, X5 rear headroom and 7-series legroom, but with a twin-turbocharged V8 engine mounted in the front.

It’s a heady mixture, and the bottom line is that it partly skirts around the “social acceptability” issue that clings on to large SUVs. The V8 is mated to an eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox that actually weighs less than the previous six-cog auto, and all that power is (perhaps unusually, considering the mild SUV styling) channeled through the two 19-inch wheels at the back of the car. Four-wheel drive is not an option....


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pushrod27pushrod27 - 10/23/2009 3:56:57 PM
+2 Boost
I get what they're going for with the interior package, but the exterior profile just isn't attractive. same with the Mercedes R-Class, Chrysler Pacifica, and that new Ford Flex-based Lincoln contraption that's coming out... if you ever sat inside one of these to experience the spaciousness and smooth ride, you'd get it, but they just can't seem to make them look right on the outside yet. some people seem to like the Ford Flex styling, but I don't.
i guess it's hard for stylists to make the whole low hood, high roof, wide body thing work out.


JRobUSCJRobUSC - 10/23/2009 4:11:52 PM
+3 Boost
I just saw one in person at my local dealer, they're having a launch event tonight for it. It's a lot better looking in person. It's like a stretched, lowered X6. It is a large vehicle, no doubt, but it's on a 7-Series chassis so it was never going to be small. My biggest concern prior to seeing it in real life was the bulbousness of the back end (I like the X6 but the back end is huuuuuuge), and I'm glad to say it's not nearly as big as it seemed in photos. It's also super nice inside (the interior is lifted almost straight out of the 7, minus the leather dash, but with better ambient lighting and movable/reclining rear seats) and extremely practical (the rear bulkhead/hatch concept is really cool, though I'd be willing to forgo the secondary smaller trunk opening for a more streamlined rear). For someone looking for all the technology and comfort of a 7-Series at 50-80% of the price, it's a good idea. For someone wanting the spaciousness and practicality of a wagon or SUV without having to actually drive a wagon or SUV, it's a good idea.


Yonder7Yonder7 - 10/23/2009 5:28:31 PM
+1 Boost
I already saw the car in person....and for me it is Ugly, but if I have to buy a car just for the interior.....no other choice....5GT is the design. That car inside is beautyful and second to none. As in the R class the car is ugly outside but inside, with seating for 6 persons of more than 6' with the Panorama glass...you feel as you are in an aircraft, and same apply to the 5GT, and with the extraordinary agility of the X6...you can rest asured....it will be another ultimate driving machine.


theoptimisticpessimisttheoptimisticpessimist - 10/23/2009 6:15:41 PM
0 Boost
Yonder7

It's like you're reading my mind.


JRobUSCJRobUSC - 10/23/2009 6:30:47 PM
-2 Boost
we didn't get to drive it. As for the interior, I agree -- it's by far the nicest in the class, about 100x nicer than the new E-class. Audi will have to step it up on the upcoming A6. Exterior-wise, I am not going to call the car pretty, and the new 5-Series sedan will be a much better looking car from outside (actually from what I have seen I believe the 5 sedan will be a very, very good looking car). But I won't call it ugly either. It looked better than I expected, good enough that I'd like to see it in some other colors. And good enough that I'd drive one, and so would my wife. She steadfastly refuses to drive a wagon, and I am tired of her needlessly driving SUV's, so this is a pretty perfect compromise for us.


2ndbimmer2ndbimmer - 10/24/2009 10:27:02 AM
-2 Boost
i like it and cant wait to see it in person. I guess I have to wait until December.


bmwdrvrbmwdrvr - 10/25/2009 1:44:49 PM
+1 Boost
This car is just unappealing to me not just its styling, but its concept general. Its called a GT yet it couldnt be further from what you think about when you think GT. It has a sloping roofline but it has a high roof line(does that make sense, no), it has a complex rear hatch but whats teh point it offers less space than a regular wagon, and you would be hard pressed to buy it over the sedan unless you just have to have something different. If it were a low roof sedan that offered a larger amount of cargo space than that would make sense but this car simply makes no sense and I cant figure out why anyone would buy one from a logical standpoint. The R class at least had room for six this thing can be had as a 4 seater.......


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