What Is the Best Bmw 5 Series
Generation Gap: Ranking each and every version of the BMW 5 Series
BMW's midsize sedan has performance, luxury, and some highs and lows
The BMW 5 Series is a pioneering luxury sedan that quickly became a legend, once the automaker's M division began tweaking its fun-to-drive formula to give it legitimate world-beating speed and handling.
In between the model's humble beginnings, and its current status as the brand's do-everything large sedan, it underwent an almost constant evolution that in some ways helped to shape the overall premium car market — especially from a performance perspective.
Which versions of the 5 Series are worth singling out for their contributions to growing the model as one of BMW's most important vehicles today? Here's our ranking of each and every 5 Series generation ever built.
1996-2003 E39 BMW 5 Series
When the E39-generation 5 Series appeared on the scene at the end of the 1990s, it came as a startling thunderclap across the skies of luxury car companies around the world. Vastly more modern in appearance, features, and technology than the E34 it replaced, the E39 managed to hone its handling while simultaneously boosting the comfort of its increasingly-luxurious surroundings. It also happened to be head-and-shoulders above most of its midsize competitors at the time, triggering a wave of catch-up at Audi and Mercedes-Benz.
The E39 was a tour de force , a car that could be had in fun but unassuming 528i six-cylinder trim; with a startlingly quick V8 in the 540i; or as a world-beating performance car in full M5 regalia. The latter featured a 400-horsepower version of the brand's eight-cylinder engine, dubbed the S62, and could put dedicated performance coupes in their place in both a straight line and on a race course. It's arguable the E39 represents the last time the 5 Series could be a called a true driver's car, as future iterations would gain size and weight as they tipped inexorably towards the opulent end of the scale.
1988-1995 E34 BMW 5 Series
The E34 would do most of the legwork in acclimating customers outside of Germany to the idea a midsize BMW was the next logical step for young urban professionals to take, once they had graduated to middle management. Retaining the classic front-end styling of the E30 3 Series, but adding a little more heft to the car's silhouette, the E34 was heavier than the E28 it replaced, balancing fun behind the wheel with a more buttoned-down character while cruising.
Unlike its predecessor, a wagon was added to the model mix when the E34 debuted. The car would also straddle BMW's transition from its '80s-era "big six" inline engines to its more modern designs, through the adoption of the M50 2.5L six-cylinder and, later, the 4.0L unit that would become the first V8 ever offered in a 5 Series. BMW purists would also celebrate the E34 M5 as being the last vehicle from the brand's motorsports division to be completely hand-built.
2017-Present G30 BMW 5 Series
The current 5 Series is almost as impressive as the E39 was in its day, especially when considering just how competent it is in nearly every aspect of carrying out its mission statement. Indeed, given the car's speed, handling, plushness, and advanced safety and infotainment tech, the G30 almost makes the full-size 7 Series (with which it shares a platform) redundant.
Gobs of torque from the M550i's twin-turbo V8 also threaten to eliminate the need for the range-topping M5 too, unless you absolutely plan to take the latter to the race track on a regular basis (and therefore will find use for its all-wheel-drive system's unusual rear-wheel-drive mode). Even when found with its base turbocharged six-cylinder engine, however, the G30 is a force to be reckoned with as an all-around luxury sedan contender. What keeps it from the top of our list? While it might be exceptionally quick, it would be a stretch to call any G30 model engaging to drive, especially given the lack of a manual transmission on the order sheet.
1983-1987 E28 BMW 5 Series
The E28 wasn't the first 5 Series to make it across the Atlantic, but to most premium car buyers, it represented their initial brush with the brand outside of the ubiquitous E30 3 Series that had taken over the aspirational sport sedan segment.
Visually, the car was quite similar to the original E12 5'er, but it grew in terms of passenger room, features (adding niceties such as cruise control and an onboard computer), and power, especially if one upgraded from the efficiency-minded 528e to the well-endowed 535i. The E28 would also introduce the world to the first M5, with was exported in very limited numbers and featured the S38 I6 that would go on to also power the E34 M5.
2004-2010 E60 BMW 5 Series
There's no easy way to say this: By the time the E60 rolled around, BMW styling had gone "full weird." Design chief Chris Bangle's "flame surfacing" was the order of the day across the lineup, and that led to some of the unusual scalloping, hood, and grille treatments that made the puffed-up redesign of the 5 Series an outlier from the more graceful shapes that had preceded it.
BMW still did well to give the E60 a wider range of drivetrain choices, providing it with a turbocharged six-cylinder (the first for the car) to go alongside a naturally-aspirated version of the same, and the option of all-wheel-drive. A series of beefed-up V8s would eventually boost the 550i to 362 horsepower, but the M5 stepped up to a V10 engine that borrowed design ideas from BMW's F1 program, delivering a devastating 500 horsepower, or a full 25 per cent more than the E39 had brought to the table.
BMW remained dedicated to wagons and manual gearboxes for the E60 generation, which was laudable, but it also saddled the M5 with the SMG option, an automated sequential manual that stands as one of the company's most dubious technical achievements.
1972-1981 E12 BMW 5 Series
The very first 5 Series is also perhaps the most forgettable. Driving one is fun in the way that most same-era European sedans are, what with its lightweight character and direct road feel. In some ways, the E12 could be seen as "training wheels" for BMW's eventual assault on the U.S. premium market, as even when found in M535i trim, the car finds itself comfortably in the "competent" column rather than truly exciting for enthusiasts. Throw in the fact that very few examples made it to either Canada or the United States, and the E12's impact isn't nearly as important as that of the E28 that followed.
2011-2016 F10 BMW 5 Series
Most luxury brands have their doldrums, and the F10 5 Series is the direct result of BMW's. Bland to look at and uninspiring to drive, the F10 overcompensated for the E60's Bangle excess by toning things down a little too much, particularly in emphasizing a detached piloting experience.
Sure, it was an okay premium sedan, and the turbocharged V8 offered by the M5 version was blazingly fast, but the car suffered from a major personality deficit that saw BMW undergo a major rethink when the F10 rolled in to replace it. The final straw? BMW's decision to replace the 5 Series wagon with the truly hideous 5 Series GT hatchback.
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Source: https://driving.ca/features/feature-story/generation-gap-ranking-each-and-every-version-of-the-bmw-5-series