STOP THE PRESSES: THESE Are The FIRST LEAKED Shots Of The All-New BMW 5-Series

The new BMW 5-Series is dead on arrival. The interior is even cheaper looking than the current model with its bright lights and blingy chrome accents. The exterior is barely changed from the current model. The driving dynamics were softened generations ago.

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class will continue to outsell the BMW 5-Series and the new Audi A6 will prove this new BMW 5-Series is little more than an afterthought in the midsize luxury sedan segment.

There was really no need for BMW to hide the interior. This look is exactly as expected.

What am I missing? This has zero appeal. I agree, this is dead on arrival.

Mercedes and Genesis just let out a big fat collective, "YES".

Sorry, BMW, this is disappointing. Had most of these design elements (headlights, LED taillights) not been introduced on the 3 Series 4 years ago, then this could be seen as the "new design theme" for the brand. Unfortunately it just comes off as lazy and cost-cutting. And that interior looks like it took two steps backwards. While it does look a tad more modern, it hasn't advanced anything.

It looks like the same shifter, center stack area. Come On - they changed the steering wheels for everyone

I have to say it looks older and less appealing to me than the previous model, with the same bulbous proportions as the E46 3 series.

I agree completely.

BMW's latest designs reflect a company too afraid to make a mistake. The strong Germanic culture seems to be at fault...Follow orders but if things do not go well heads will roll dominates the thinking. It lead VW to dieselgate and BMW to be more scared of failure rather than eagerly pursuing success. The Ultimate Driving Machine is going soft as it becomes overly cautious in pursuit of the mass market. Like a young beauty who has not aged well in later life.

Honda Accord all the way.

The back 3/4 view is lean, angular, muscular, modern and promising, but the front end looks like it was designed by someone else.

Just as making the current Camaro look almost exactly like the old one - there is no purpose in producing a car that is stylistically almost impossible to differentiate from several generations before this one. Unless there is a substantial change in the power and dynamics of the cars - and that alone would probably not be possible - there exists little reason to buy the new one.

It is not just that BMW has gone soft - it is that people associate progress with change - and so there should be some OBVIOUS thing that would tell most everyone that this is a new car - That does not require a magnifying glass. That is why I hate Audi - they are almost impossible to tell from generations AND between the sizes - unless you are close up. Why would I buy an A8 that looks almost exactly like an A3 from a short distance.

Even if the performance is noteworthy, this will sell like the dying days of an old car.

Wrong - it will still sell very well because most people who buy it couldn't care a less about all the things mentioned above - they will buy it because of the badge

I don't believe this new 5-Series will sell very well at all.

First, it looks just like the current model, which itself saw sales decline 60% last month compared to September 2015 and is down 18% YTD.

Second, yes, this is the "new" model, but this new 5-Series has the same enhancements over the current generation as the current 7-Series had over the previous generation. The new 7-Series is selling in fewer numbers than the previous generation.

Honestly, it is very hard to find a new 7-Series on the streets of Manhattan but yet the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is literally on every block.

The new 7-Series and 5-Series will suffer from upgrade stagnation much like the iPhone 6S did compared to the iPhone 6. Buyers who don't see any difference between their current 5-Series and the new one, will be less likely to buy the new one because their current 5-Series is essentially the same thing.

I agree with Germannut that the 7-series is almost completely non-existent on the streets of NYC. It is quite an ugly car though. You could say its dated, you can say its 'old style' but the bottom line is the proportions of the 7 are just off - it kind of teeters over its tires, regardless of what rim sizes are used. Its stance makes it look like its about to tip over.

The 5 series is different - it has an aggressive, athletic, and balanced stance; the proportions all work; the chromy-grill even looks OK.

I think the 5 is going to do just fine.

BMW should just cancel the 7-series here. I don't know for whom it was designed for, but is a really, really ugly car.

@HoustonMidtown This will sell with ridiculous incentivization like is currently abundant on the 7 Series. BMW is doing Maserati-like steep discounts to move cars and Mercedes simply isn't doing likewise.

I haven't cared much for any BMWs since the e39 5 series but I really like this design. It is very conservative but the lines are clean and it looks very nice to me. I'm probably in the minority sonce I dont really care for the new E Class exterior (interior is gorgeous). I think this car will look killer in white with a M sport trim and black grill.

I am almost sure that it will have a lot of cool tech but the old design looks a lot better. Let's face it, one car could be the best of the best but if it does not like to the buyers it won't sale as they expect. Cadillac have superior performance but they fail to attract buyers...seems to me that BMW is following the Cadillac path.

nothing says flattery like copying a design - this is what they are saying at Honda right now. Can this really be the real thing ? hard to imagine but then again look at the new 7 series. Big yawn...

Not sure if anyone here owns an E class, but for me they are German version of the Lexus ES, albeit a RWD with very nice interior (E55 and E63 are exceptions).

If the new 5 regains the E39 540i's athleticism and driving feel, I would definitely give it a try - even with the interior as shown.

<<Honestly, it is very hard to find a new 7-Series on the streets of Manhattan but yet the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is literally on every block.>>

I hate these kind of anecdotal observations offered up as proof of anything. What say you cite the actual sales results of each car? I'm guessing they'd prove your point far better than saying you didn't see one this morning.

I've used the actual sales statistics time and time again. I figured I would introduce a personal observation given that New York City is the most expensive city in the United States with many extremely wealthy people who like to be driven around in a large luxury sedan.

The BMW 7-Series is getting demolished by the Mercedes-Benz S-Class in terms of sales, but that's nothing new - it always has!

I have to step in to defend the 7 here, though I'm biased because I own one.

The S-Class did 1,440 last month, the 7-Series did 1,201, in the US. That's not getting "demolished". If anything, the 7-Series is one of the few bright spots in the BMW sales charts these days.

Plus, the S-Class has been out two years longer, so of course you're going to see more of them. And on top of that, it's more popular for livery/black car duty, especially in a place like Manhattan. It's not surprising to see more of them running around town.

People are generally responding well to the new 7, and that does not include people online who have never driven it or been inside one in person. The S-Class is still a nearly unassailable automobile, but it's not like the 7-Series is an also-ran, collapsing like a souffle either.

@NewQ but if you look at how heavily incentivized the 7 Series was, it's surprising that it did not sell better.

I never hated the E60 and the Bangle butt. Chris Bangle was a real designer. He was willing to push designs forward. It was the conservative traditionalist that ruined it. After Chris Bangle left, the designs went ultra conservative and this is the 2nd generation to continue it. Sales never dropped with the E60 but management was too scared.

When I first saw the pics I thought it was a 3 Series. I'm really curious as to why, even though it makes sense to create one platform and stretch it, they make the cars look nearly identical. The C/E are only slightly different and look identical. I've seen a couple E's but the only way to tell is to look at the rear end and see if there is a C or an E. The 300 mill is crap and in both so its hard to tell. They used a smaller scale S Class dash to elevate it but there is very little difference there, except price. This car looks identical to a 3 and the 7 looks like a stretched 3 as well. Interior could have been pulled from any BMW in the last 10 yrs I'd say? The A4 is the new platform for Audi and I imagine the new A6 will look nearly identical to it. Gotta say the Genesis products look fresher than any of the others and can be had w/V8's (which IMO is a proper luxury car offering) without stabbing you in the wallet. Mercedes sell because they're Mercedes and have the pedigree. They're not the cost is no object engineered cars they once were, especially for the money. Sure they have "driving gizmo's but is the vehicle itself w/o the gizmos that great or advanced...no they're not. And to even get a 6 and leather now you need to spend $65K++ ... I'm done with all 3.

Mercedes, BMW and Audi make their cars look the same because of branding and design themes that are found throughout their model lineup. A BMW has a kidney grille, an Audi has a large (and now 3D grille), a Mercedes-Benz has a three-pointed star and a trunk that slopes.

These are hallmarks of the brand that buyers come to expect and associate with the brand.

Not sure if you were replying to me but if so, thanks for stating something I wasn't addressing. Their cars ARE identical except for size. Kidneys, Stars etc... duh! Its not the Star its that they're freakin identical. Which IMO means lazy design or simply taking one platform and stretching it but for cryin out loud why not give each model something to create its own character. The Germans used to build highly engineered cars designed to go 100 all day long, but none of them are gorgeous and the latest crop are all just boring. Don't get me wrong I actually like the new 7 but I don't like how it looks like a bigger 3. I've driven E's for years but the new one is identical to the C and has the same crappy mill. I think the Genesis cars will make inroads as the Germans get lazy and lose their German-ness. MB is not an over engineered car, BMW is not The Ultimate Driving Machine any longer. Their vehicles are nice, very expensive cars that cost a lot to fix down the road. Nah, keep em. There are really no "special" cars out there anymore save the 911.

The difference is BMW takes an interior that is less luxurious and cheaper looking than its rivals and uses it in every model. Mercedes-Benz takes an interior that is more luxurious and better looking than BMW's and uses it in every model. Audi takes an interior that is more luxurious in a sleeker way and has more technology and uses it in every model.

I expect BMW's U.S. sales problems to continue given that the new 7-Series has sold terribly and BMW took the same formula for the new 7-Series and applied it to the new 5-Series. I don't believe this new 5-Series will be close to enough to pull BMW out of its U.S. sales decline.

It will hasten it in fact.

Completely agree...

Wow, the exterior looks like... every other BMW. It looks almost identical to the current 5 series.

It's amazing that BMW (and to some extent, Audi) decided to get more angular just at the time Mercedes returned (thankfully) to curves & rounded elements. The side profile of this car is just busy with quite a handful of arguably superfluous lines.

Performance & features will always be great from the top brands, of course, but design-wise, it is almost unfair how far ahead Mercedes has pulled from the rest of the pack (though the CLA - which seems to have been designed in-transition between design languages - should be toned down a bit).

Design is often subjective. However, most timeless/classic cars are curvy rather than angular for a reason - rounded elements are often more appealing to the senses (Porsche 911 has pretty much lived off this principle with its mostly-unchanged-yet-still-desired design).