New BMW 5-series unveiled

BMW’s seventh-generation 5-series gets a new platform, better interior space and new tech; to go on on sale by end 2017 from Rs 50 lakh.

- Sergius Barretto

BMW has just taken the wraps off the all-new 5-series. Both a luxury car and a sports sedan in equal measure, the 5-series drives well and is very comfortable on the inside. Mercedes’ objectives with the new car were to make it lighter, less flabby on the outside and much better to drive.

Codenamed G30, the latest incarnation of the world’s most successful business sedan, as BMWs like to call it, sticks closely to the carmaker’s familiar design language. According to 5-series project director Johann Kistler, this is a deliberate move, based on feedback from customers. Even so, the new seventh generation 5-series appears wider and more imposing than the outgoing car. There are some sharp creases running down the sides and the tail-lights are the wellknown BMW L-shaped lights.

The big change, however, is beneath the surface. The 5-series is now based on BMW’s new Cluster Architecture (CLAR) body structure, which was introduced last year with the 7-series. The new sedan incorporates more lightweight aluminium within its floorpan and bulkheads, but gives the expensive carbonfibre components of the 7-series a miss. BMW says the new structure, along with other weight-saving measures such as a lighter wiring loom, have resulted in a reduction of up to 100kg in kerb weight.