2004 BMW 530i

When BMW's first mid-range sedan went on sale in the U.S. in 1968, the company's clever importer, Park Avenue-based Max Hoffman, astutely packaged as many desirable features as he could, mounted a distinctive "Bavaria" badge on the decklid, priced the car under $5,000 and began raking in the money. Earlier Hoffman had persuaded the BMW factory to shoehorn a 2-liter engine into its agile little 1600 2-door sedan. The resulting BMW 2002 put the once-struggling Munich firm squarely on the U.S. map. The Bavaria that followed, a neatly sized 3-liter sedan, was the frosting on the strudel. From the beginning, the range that evolved into the BMW 5 Series set high standards for rival sport sedans. The newest version ensures the same.

A faintly perceptive aerodynamic lip sweeps across the decklid.

Arguably, no company in the motoring world has a clearer, more consistent statement of purpose as BMW—in every model it makes. Stated simply, BMW's are all about driving pleasure and excitement. Until recently, their styling was Bauhaus design school simple and clean. Bodylines were functionally appropriate, never shocking. That changed with the current generation 745i. From its squinty headlamps to its bustle-back tail, the new 7 polarized fans and critics alike. The controversy was exacerbated by the car's complex iDrive, a console-mounted controller that multiplexed hundreds of necessary functions in one unit, but did so in a way that was not particularly intuitive, while proving to be far from easy to master. Although critics (and some loyal BMW clients) didn't like the 7 Series at first, the model's sales are currently strong, and many naysayers have become converts. After you view the 7 Series for awhile and acclimate to its shape, it begins to look massive, sculpted, and even majestic. The same could be said of its slightly smaller brother, the new 530i.


First impressions are important here because the 5 Series, now in its fifth generation, is BMW's bread and butter model. Company chairman Helmut Panke says, "it accounts for more than one quarter of BMW's total sales." For '04, in Panke's words, the new 5 "is emotional, but at the same time combined with sufficient rational substance. Those characteristics," says Panke, "are especially coveted by the 5 Series' target group."


Where emotion is concerned, the new 530i is sure to satisfy BMW loyalists. Its lines are clean, crisply sculpted and pleasing to the eye. There are intriguing continuous curves, like the sweetly arched roofline and the radiused wheelwells. These are offset by razor-edged reliefs, like the waistline reveal, the lower grille opening and a faintly perceptive aerodynamic lip that sweeps across the decklid. Look at the 5 Series in photographs and you may discern some detail fussiness. On the road, especially in a light-colored shade, it's very attractive, and it's instantly recognizable as a BMW.

Active Steering seemes to anticipate direction changes as quickly as you of them.

That said, the rational side is where this new Bimmer stars. BMW incorporated a great deal of aluminum in its new 5 Series. The hood, front fenders and front body structure, for example, are all light metal—to save weight and to ensure a near-perfect 50/50 weight distribution. There's a 2-section aluminum driveshaft and vented disc brakes with aluminum calipers. The lower suspension arms in front are aluminum, as are the subframes, front and rear, along with the rear multilink suspension, the cast wheels, and the head and block of the 225-hp DOHC, 24-valve, 3-liter six.