EXCLUSIVE VIDEO, First Review Of The All-New 2011 BMW 5-Series: A Future Classic?

Wow, great vid, really adds a lot over the static photos, at least for me.

I agree this is a modern classic. What a ride to aspire to.

When will we get them in the US?

Maybe, if BMW has done something about the 5 series dismal repair record. Sex appeal isn't everything. How about an article about that on Autospies?

It keeps reminding me of current 3 series, so.... NO.
The new Z4 could though.

oh man, talk about a crazy-BMW-fan-obsessed video. oo1, i have never seen anyone so biasly absorbed into anything before as much as you. i watched this video for 8mins and had to stop there. oo1, you arent drunk and ready to have a hangover by the BMW kool-aid, you've lost touch with reality because of it. according to you, this new BMW 5 series is a gift from the gods and we should just sell what we own already (because it is inferior by all means) and buy this and call it a LIFE since its already a born classic, right?

goodness gracious....i'm afraid how this site is gonna hold up once details on the M5 get leaked into the internet.

Greatcar inside and out.I thought the current gen 5-Series was great too but they really improved on perfection this time.Great job BMW.

Btw, is this the new N55 single turbo on the 5.35i or the N54 twin turbo?

It should def be the N55 single turbo.

I agree with KZ258. The gushing, glowing, superlative-strewn video "review" was more than I could take! It is indeed a gorgeous car, but c'mon! I realize now why all non-BMW cars on this site are always getting ruthlessly trashed or given only faint praise. If it ain't a BMW, it ain't worthy.

Nothing really "ground breaking" on this car, and certainly not a "classic". Real classic cars are worth more today than when they were selling new. Do you think in 10 or 15 years this BMW will be worth anything?? Another gushing thread for the Bavarian boys here at BMWSPIES.

V-10 NSX

This is an article from http://www.autoextremist.com/
by Peter De Lorenzo about your beloved BMW!

And then there’s BMW. Speaking of driving it off into a ditch, BMW is now two car companies diametrically opposed to each other. There’s the “old” BMW that graces us with the quintessential all-around enthusiast machine - the magnificent 3 Series - and, at least some of their “M” machines (only a few of which can be considered desirable), and then there’s the rest of the company, or, as I like to call it, “BMW Heavy” which specializes in overdone, overwrought land cruisers (X6, 5GT and other assorted crossover-SUVs) that are about as far away as you can get from the concept of the Ultimate Driving Machine.

In BMW’s case I don’t have to ask what happened. You could see this coming ten years ago, when I started this publication. It was right around then that the German automakers led by Mercedes and BMW launched a technological arms race that operated under the assumption that the more technology, the better, with vehicle mass and common sense be damned.


Combine that attitude with the fact that those two automakers felt compelled to chase every possible niche – both real and imagined – on the odd chance that they might actually get a leg up on their rival somehow, and the scenario grew exponentially. And then add in a huge dollop of hubris for good measure, oh, and then let the Bangle-led design era trundle along unfettered until it ran completely amuck and you have a recipe for complete disaster.

Now, we have “BMW Heavy” a purveyor of 5,000+ lb. people movers that have little rhyme or reason in the overall scheme of things. Add in “M” versions of some of those same vehicles, and you increase the hurl factor by about a 100.


Walking around the BMW display at Cobo was a little frightening, no, make that a lot frightening. All the accoutrements were there, the sleek display with cool graphics - the overall look and feel of a BMW display that you’d expect to see at an auto show - but it was as if a cruel plot had been unleashed overnight and the BMW vehicles – at least the vehicles you’d expect from BMW – were nowhere to be found, instead replaced by a posse of lumbering behemoths that could exist quite nicely as the “Official Vehicles of America’s Biggest Loser.”


It was a real eye-opener, to say the least.

I'm with 001. This is what a BMW 5-serie should be. It looks great and will for years to come. A worthy update to the E39. Count me in.

The front of it really isn't that great

Definitely NOT a modern classic. It's much better looking than the outgoing model by sheer virtue of not being ugly, but it is well short of being noteworthy in styling, or arguably, in other ways.

Kudos, BMW, for stepping away from ugly, but I'd like to see you make beautiful cars that inspire me to do stupid things with my money. I suggest you combine your impeccable ride with gorgeous styling, outside and in, great ergonomics in lieu of gadgetry, and attain reasonably low "defects" numbers. You'll have my heart, once again. (FWIW, I have two non-current BMWs in my garage, and I love them both!).

insideline.com: The combination of BMW's new four-wheel-steer tech with electric-assist steering felt superb.

autocar.co.uk: The overall agility is highly impressive for what is now quite a large car.

motortrend.com (zur Performance): That's impressive, especially if the fuel economy ends up equal or better.

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/5-series/2011/2011-bmw-535i-first-drive.html

http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/FirstDrives/BMW-5-series/246752/

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/112_1001_2011_bmw_535i_test/suspension_and_engine.html#ixzz0dKraCAgx

Not a huge BMW fan by any means but this new design looks much better than the old. Interior quality is much better too, although design wise I like the E60 better.....

Same here. I almost stop the video after 5 minutes, but instead I muted the thing so that I didn't need to hear agent 001. Mercedes fan here, I think the car is very nice and a great improvement (inside and out) over the old model.

Don't blame them 001, as they don't know what BMW does to their fans ;)