The New Five or how to cure Bimmer Withdrawal Syndrome
Written: Oct 29 '03 (Updated Nov 02 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great ride and handling. Smooth economical engine. Outstanding appearance and quality.
Cons: None so far except for pricey extras.
The Bottom Line: Recommended highly. Good value for the money. It just feels good whenever I sit down to drive it.
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| LouLodico's Full Review: 2004 BMW 5 Series |
I enjoyed a three year lease on a 2001 740iL right up until early May 2003. When it came time to bite the bullet and either buy it out , re lease it, or let it go, I figured that it had been a great car, but $42k+ was too much for a car that old and dated by the new models out there. Really wanted a new 745, but the negative reviews soured me on that idea. Knowing that the new 5 was in the works for fall, I decided to wait it out and see what it looked like.
So, when my dealer called and said that he had a new Silver Gray in, I had to give it a try. Bingo, love at first drive. Only a six, but a nice six. Plenty of power for an old timer like me, and, I swear, as much room as there was in the old 740 in the front seat, and who really cares about the back seat if you are driving it yourself. The other major complaint that I had about the 740 was the tiny trunk. The new five trunk is huge by comparison.
Picked the car up a week ago Monday. Drove from our home in upstate NY to our winter home in Georgia over the weekend. Wonderful trip in the new car. Averaged over 34 mpg with average speed well over 60 mph. High test gas, but with that mileage, who cares. Very comfortable ride. Great handling and roadability. Even my wife, who hated the 740, likes this one. Much more manageable size, but still very good use of space.
After all the terrible press about i drive, one week has made me a believer. Kind of weird the first few days, but perfectly natural now.
I love the look of the new 5. The trunk looks a bit odd, but when I fill it up, I especially appreciate the extra room that it has. My grandkids all said awesome when they saw it and repeated it when they drove it.
The biggest idiosyncracy is that two mornings, back north, when the temp was freezing, the i drive window didn't light up until the thermometer had risen a few degrees above freezing. Haven't had a chance to check this out with my dealer, but am not worried about it as we seldom have weather that cold down here on Jekyll Island.
Dash is handsome. Would be nice to have a temperature gauge, but no dice. Speedo, gas and tach are well placed and easy to read. Seats are easy to adjust and quite comfortable. The controls are completely different from the old 740. No more speed control on the steering wheel. A stalk in the lower left quadrant does it nicely. Stores multiple speeds in memory and adjusts easily with taps toward or away from the driver. Much like the Mercedes stalk, but not as easy to confuse with the turn signal. Turn signal is well placed in the upper left quadrant and has a neat three click feature that makes signaling a lane change BMW efficient.
The transmission is smooth as silk. Six speeds and comes with Steptronic. SMG, with the paddles will be available later this year and it would be interesting to try. Tranny is quiet and unobtrusive. Much nicer than the five speed on the 740. That one always bothered me at low speeds in town as it was too noisy for a Luxo Cruiser. Brakes are just great. Good feel,and stopping ability. Haven't had to really test them yet, but the feedback is that they will haul you down rapidly and safely
The BMW Assist was difficult to get set up. Two tries by my dealer were unsuccessful and I haven't bothered ,as yet, to follow up and get it done. Appears to be a work in progress at the moment.
Options include premium package (a necessity), Xenon lights (also a necessity)), heated seats and steering wheel (nice but not a major thrill, and the fancy sound system(nice but over priced). An interesting option, that I really insisted on 3was Park Distance Control. Has a nice pictorial of the car that beeps and shows when getting too close to an obstruction. It would be nice if it came on automatically when slowing down under 2 mph, but I have found it necessary to switch it back on manually when parking after a drive. BMW's version is about $600 cheaper than Mercedes. MB has lots of nerve. Would have liked the comfort seats and the navigation system, but they were not yet available.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 52500
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Epinions.com ID:
LouLodico
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Member: Lou Lodico
Location: Jekyll Island, GA
Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
Retired Dentist. Long time car nut.Avid but lousy golfer.
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