The Good:
- Very powerful engine
- Cabin trim and features
- Ride and handling
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The Bad:
- Very expensive
- Steering lacks feel
- Average rear legroom
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The BMW 5-Series, considered by many as the benchmark luxury-sports
sedan that other carmakers aspire to, entered a new phase with its 2010
redesign. On initial reflection, one could say it went back to its roots
in terms of exterior design, conservative yet handsome, while going a
step further from its roots in terms of sportiness, with its overkill of
technology that started with the flamboyant previous-generation model.
Or has the extra tech helped more than harmed?
The external styling is standard BMW, with the kidney grille and the
angle-eye headlights, but other than that, it is rather generic to the
point that no one gave the car a second stare, even though our car, the
550i, is as pricey as they come. It is still handsome though, with its
20-inch alloys, LED tail lamps, dual exhaust tips and perfect
proportions.
On the inside, the 550i exudes every bit of the 7-Series ambience,
expected, considering the new 5er is just a shortened version of the
latest 7er. Again, the interior is designed to be as dull as the
exterior, and yet, it is still a nice place to be in. Leathery
soft-touch materials start from the dash and extend a fair way into the
footwells, all over the doors and along the centre console, with
black-stained wood and metallic-look trimmings lining it all to break
the monotony.
Cabin space is great up front, with thick well-bolstered seats,
power-adjustable in every possible way, even down to the headrests and
extendable thigh supports, though our car did not have the optional
butt-cooling feature. Rear legroom is merely average however, though
average-sized passengers are unlikely to complain. With cup-holders
front and back, various storage cubbies and a big boot, practicality is
not an issue.
The gadgetry is among the best in its class, as we’ve come to expect
from today’s electronics-laden Bimmers. There’s a superb CD/MP3 stereo
with USB and Bluetooth, iDrive computer controlled with a rotary knob, a
useable navigation system with outdated maps, some sort of internet
capability that we didn’t try out, a power boot lid, a regular sunroof,
cameras on three sides for an “overhead” view, parking sensors front and
back, manual pull-up sunshades for the rear-side windows, a decent
automatic a/c with rear vents and controls, smart keyless entry and
start, tons of airbags, a heads-up display showing gauge read-outs on
the windshield, an electric parking brake, an adaptive cruise control
system and of course, HID headlights.
The 550i engine is the monstrous 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, making 407
hp from 5500 rpm to 6400 rpm, with 600 Nm of torque available from only
1500 rpm all the way to 4500 rpm. Mated to an 8-speed automatic and
rear-wheel-drive, it’s a recipe for murder in the wrong hands, but there
are enough electronic nannies to keep things in check. With some mild
wheelspin, we launched the car towards a 0-100 kph run of 6 seconds flat
in October weather with “super” RON98 fuel, so you can be sure you’ll
outrun thugs in Chevy Camaros and wannabes in Porsche Caymans on your
way to business meetings. Just leave the 8-speed manual mode alone
though, as we had trouble keeping track of which gear we were in without
looking at the LCD cluster. The transmission is smart enough to return a
fuel economy of 13.6 litres/100 km, better than most V8 sedans.
Frankly, we believe the BMW M5 is overkill for the kind of people
who’ll buy one. The 550i is more than enough car for your speed fix,
even in the corners. Riding on 245/35 tyres up front and 275/30 in the
back, it takes curves with the grip of a madman. Whatever little body
roll that crops up is quickly quelled once the turn is over. Pump the
throttle in the middle of a corner though, and the rear slides out
enough to give you a stiffy. The ESP allows just enough wheelspin to
keep things interesting, before reining you in. This car has the
potential to be an powerful drift machine in the hands of a pro, but the
artificial feel of the nicely-weighted steering, as well as its overall
size and lack of a handbrake, means it isn’t a car that amateurs like
us will be able to master sideways at once, even though we could manage
the smaller BMW 335i just fine. For the usual grip driving in the
twisties, the excellent handling is aided by adjustable suspension that
becomes firmer at the press of a button, while the brakes are very
strong indeed.
Switch all the electronics to “comfort” though, and the 550i becomes
the luxury sedan that you damn well expected in the first place. The
ride is very smooth and quiet, with no untoward floatiness, although
there is always that slight tinge of firmness on some surfaces due to
the low-profile runflat tyres. The car always has extra power reserves
to speedily overtake at will, even when already doing 120 kph. In fact,
one quirk of this car is that it has too much low-end juice, as even the
slightest pedal application at crawling speeds makes it lurch forward
like a bat out of hell.
The BMW 550i, though utterly inconsequential to look at now, is one
hell of a sedan. It can imitate a muscle-car when you want it to, or
just be a sedate limousine for your daily routine. It is very expensive,
to put it mildly, but when you start thinking of it as a cheaper
alternative to the M5, it starts making more sense. Unless you are
Michael Schumacher or Chuck Norris, the 550i is more than enough car. |
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