Mook

I got the first look at the new 5 series this weekend and I must congratulate BMW for finally building a car that will take the heat off of the 7 series on sheer ugliness....

I don't want to bash this car as it is the (or has been) one of the best cars made, but to see the new design in the flesh takes your breath away. The lines of the headlights look like cat-eye glasses staring at you. The lines and creases in the body panels seem to go in odd directions. The lower part of the chin spoiler doesn't look finished. There was almost a GM quality in the design. Sad....

Has anyone else seen one of these? Am I crazy or is this the ugliest thing Chris Bangle has created to date? I hate to see what they will do to the 3 series.....

Gord96BRG

I have to disagree - the 5 series is ugly all right, but I still believe the 7 series and Z4 are uglier . The new 5 series definitely has a strong Pontiac resemblance at the front, and that's NOT a good thing. The back of it has strong hints of Kia or Impreza in the lights. It's just sad - dynamically, it's supposed to be the best 5 yet, but visually...

Regards,
Gordon

mikeb

I saw one last week
I like the front but the back is sorta funny

Elara

I know I'm in the minority, but I love the way the Z4 and the new 6 series look. Not sure on the 5 series yet- doesn't look like a BMW. The new 7 series I've seen have also been very easy on the eyes. I will say I found the Z3 hideous, however. Like a lumpy shark crossed with a turtle.

TiRX8

I'll be getting a new 5 in 2005! It looks incredible!

blizz81

Not a fan of the new sharky front end design.

The rear of the 5-series looks OK on print with me.

m477

The new 5 is definitely ugly, but still not as bad as the 7 and Z4. If this continues as a trend perhaps the new 3-series will only have moderate ugliness. :p

scorp76

Id have to say Ive seen worse.....*cough* G35.

I personally love it and the 7. If I were looking for a big luxo sedan, I'd buy either of these over anything from Chry....err, Benz or Toyo.....errr, Lexus.

DAC17

I'm sure the driving dynamics are impeccable. However, the looks would be enough to scare off the Halloween ghouls...

I used to be a real BMW fan. Actually, this makes it easier, as I don't have to fawn over $50K cars.

scorp76

Let's not forget the RX-8 is highly regarded as hideous as well. I personally think its just as ugly as a lot of new cars on the road (ex. 350z, G35, FX, Z4), but its driving fun makes up for it.

CoreDump

I used to think the new 5 is plain ugly, though not as much as the 7. But the new 5 is growing on me. Especially after seeing this

mikeb

that 5 is all modded up
I like it

Skyline Maniac

Looks fine to me~

pelucidor

LOL - I just saw my first 5 series advert on TV and for the first 20 secs I thought it was for a newer and uglier Pontiac. Damn you Bungle!

dankgummy

saw one in person last week and the driver of the 5 series bimmer was checking out my car as i was checking his out. i thought the car looked money. didn't like the shape of the headlights in my rear view mirror...

MattFast

I've seen him several times on the road. I think it is a great looking car! Nice long nose, cool from "en profil" en the rear is not so weird as at the 7-series. But it needs atleast 17" alloys...

P00Man

tight ride imho, like botht he 5 and the 7, thought i dont like the split grill that much
________
large **** Webcam

RobDickinson

Bangle has a lot to answer fro.

Fastest Model refresh in history for the 7 series, after only 18months, some of them are now selling 2nd hand for less than 50% of new prices, appalingly bad for BMW residuals.

His designs may be worth debating on the internet, but in the real world, there just loosing sales.

Shame is in the UK/Europe, there isnt an awful lot of competition in the 5 series sector so it'll probablky sell well. You have a choice of S-type Jag (remodeled taurus), Merc(grandad car), Audi (very old design).

pelucidor

Car magazine in the UK said the S-Type Jag wa a better drivers car than the new 5-series. Pre-orders in Europe for the new 5-series are less than normal for a brand new BMW model, and it can barely hold MSRP from day one. This is BMW's bread and butter car, and so far very few like it's styling or active steering.

I see shades of IBM 20 years ago - arrogance because of a long history of unwavering sales that suddenly evaporates after a few missteps.

blizz81

Saw a special on Speedvision or whatever it is now this weekend, a half-hour just on the new 5-series. Hans Stuck Jr. sure seemed to like the 530i. Was pretty cool to watch, I'm no track buff but I think they were doing laps at Nuremberg.


Was still ugly

Ike

I like the new BMWs quite a bit save for the Z4, but I didn't like the Z3 either...

Rob, there's a lot more to choose from than that... Lexus, Lincoln, Infiniti, Cadilac. And I have to disagree with the grandad statement, I'll take anything with a S or AMG badge on it thank you very much

RobDickinson

I'm talking about Europe, because thats where I'm from.

We dont get Lincoln, Infiniti, Cadilac.

Lexus is a possible , but I dont see them having much to compete in the 5 series. The IS is 3 series and the GS is probably 7 sereis in size.

Even with S or AMG badge, mercs 'image' here is grandad, and no matter what you do to a 3 ton cars HP, it still feels like a huge barge, which leaves the BMW well out in front in drivability compared to merc.

Ike

GS300 competes with the 5 series, not very well but it does :p I don't agree with the Mercedes statement again, I would have a hard time deciding between a E55 AMG and a M5, and I'll take an S600 over a 7 series any day...

Gord96BRG

Those SpeedTV "Test Drive" programs are paid for by the manufacturers - sure, Stuck liked it, he was being paid to like it! They're definitely biased, but as long as you know that up front, they're still interesting.

Regards,
Gordon

blizz81

Yeah, regardless, it was still pretty cool to see them push the car. It looked like it performed fairly well.