BMW 5 Series 2018 in-depth review _ Mat Watson Reviews
**A Comprehensive Review of the New BMW 5 Series**
The new BMW 5 series is an absolutely brilliant car ride, offering a perfect blend of comfort and performance. Without the driver assistance features, the ride becomes even more enjoyable, allowing you to fully appreciate the road and its imperfections. However, with the M sport suspension and bigger wheels with run-flat tires, the experience takes a slight hit. The smaller rims and normal tires make a significant difference in terms of tire wear and comfort.
One of the standout features of the 5 series is its exceptional quietness during cruising, thanks to the smaller rims and normal tires. The noise level is virtually non-existent, making it an ideal choice for long road trips or daily commutes. Additionally, the car's interior is designed with comfort in mind, featuring soft-closure doors that eliminate the need for manual door closure.
The engine options available in the 5 series are equally impressive. While the 2-liter diesel is a great choice, it can be a bit rattly when revved. However, those looking for something smoother and quieter may want to consider the 3-liter turbo petrol or the 540i. The 8-speed automatic gearbox is a highlight of the car, providing seamless gear shifts and responsive acceleration.
The interior of the 5 series is also worthy of praise, with a range of features that cater to different driving styles and preferences. The adaptive dampers can be adjusted on the fly, allowing drivers to tailor their ride to suit their mood. Furthermore, the steering weight and throttle response can be modified to suit individual tastes.
However, there are some drawbacks to consider when buying the new 5 series. One of the most annoying features is the plastic trim surrounding the display, which looks ridiculous in certain situations. Additionally, there is no underfloor storage like some other luxury cars, making it difficult to stow items such as umbrellas or bags.
Despite these minor quibbles, the BMW 5 series offers a plethora of cool features that make up for its shortcomings. The car's advanced aerodynamics system helps improve fuel efficiency and reduce drag, while the digital key allows for secure and convenient access to the vehicle. Other notable features include the ability to lock and unlock the car remotely using your phone, as well as the option to park the car in tight spaces using remote control.
For those looking to purchase a new BMW 5 series, it's worth noting that there are some exclusive offers available online. By visiting Car.co.uk, customers can save an average of £3,300 on their new car purchase.
**Five Things to Consider When Buying the New BMW 5 Series**
* **Light Seats:** The seats in the 5 series look fantastic, but they may require more frequent cleaning if you wear jeans regularly.
* **BMW Digital Key:** While the digital key may seem high-tech at first, it can be laggy and slow to use. Additionally, the surrounding plastic trim looks ridiculous in certain situations.
* **Underfloor Storage:** Unlike some other luxury cars, the 5 series does not have underfloor storage, making it difficult to stow items such as umbrellas or bags.
* **Flickery Reflections:** In certain lighting conditions, the car's silver trim can create annoying flickery reflections that may cause a migraine.
* **Easter Egg:** The reviewer noticed a box set of the TV series "The Wire" in the car's boot. However, the joke relies on an understanding of British television terminology, as "Five Seasons" is used to refer to the five seasons of the show, rather than the standard US term "Seasons".
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthis is the new BMW 5 series and you can think of it as being The Sweet Spot in the BMW saloon car range so the three series that's a bit like the iPad Mini you know it's pretty good but for some people it's going to be too small whereas the seven series that's a bit like the iPad Pro and well they're like carrying a tray around bit silly really whereas this Five series it's like the original iPad it's powerful enough and it's big enough and it is reasonably affordable so it starts from around £36,000 and if you click up there to go to car. co.uk you can PIR offers from dealers and buy a price you're confident in and really this car is going to be big enough for almost everyone the first thing to note is that the doors open nice and wide making it very easy to clumber into the back and once you're here I mean look at this got loads of room you got a question why anyone would actually need a seven series knee room look I can do three fists between my knees and the seat in front that's in my usual driving position Headroom that's good as well people over 6 foot will be fine back here as for sitting three breast in the back well this seat is raised up a bit and this hump in the floor is massive so it's not ideal for the person in the middle seat but the car is quite wide so the people in the outer seats will be fine and then there's the other element of practicality so look we've got airplane style folders there so I can put my iPad away there and Cubbies throughout the car are really generous I can fit a big bottle in this rear door bin there's some more storage here look little cup holders they pop out and you can pay a bit extra and get the car with three-way folding rear seats that brings us onto the boot now rather interestingly the capacity slightly more than that of the larger 7 Series which just seems a bit bizarre but there you go and it is it's a really nice useful size the lift isn't too large to lift stuff over either and the opening is nice and wide you've also got some useful storage areas about the pl however the overall capacity is still 10 L less than on the Mercedes E-Class is that going to bother you who knows now if you click up there you can watch my in-depth practicality video see how much stuff we could squeeze in this car's boot how easy it is to fit a child seat in the back and what it's like with three adults in the rear seats now I mentioned the Mercedes E-Class in terms of the design I don't think this Fire series quite stands out as much it doesn't have the Elegance of the Merced is but it's still a nice looking thing and on the inside I have to say BMW's designers have done a fantastic job it is classy without being overly showy and it's all very easy to use plus I like the seating position me it's just spot on you can rest your elbow there and there and just cruise around for hours on end totally comfortable I can't F the quality either just looking everywhere looking around trying to find cheap bits of plastic I can't find any none at all this feels expensive inside and it's actually well equipped as well so as standard you get the big full-on professional navi system you get digital driver's display and this brings me on to the new high drive so they've updated it so you can control it in the usual way using the swivel wheel you can press a button here and talk to the car and it even understands a brummy accent you can use it as a touchcreen as well if you want to just go back and there gesture control so I can wave my finger around to do things like increase the volume though it's a bit temperamental that and yeah I think it's a bit of a gimmick but if you want to see more detail on this Entertainment System click it there to watch my detailed review of it it's really really impressive that's the sensible stuff dealt with now for some fun and the 5 series rear drive setup helps with this BMW lets you turn the stability control off all the way which allows you to act like a holig gun in your diesel powered executive Saloon it's a very very important buying criteria that not while you'd never actually turn the stability control off especially not on the road my Tom Foolery does illustrate how well balanced and predictable the Five series is and for those one in maximum grip it's also available with all-wheel drive but there's more you need to know this BMW 5 series is larger than the old version yet somehow it manages to be up to 100 kg lighter in fact it's the lightest car in its class and that helps the handling it feels well not like a sports car but it's certainly agile enough and if you want to have some fun you can do the steering's responsive though it doesn't really have much in the way of feel but that that doesn't really matter to anyone other than motoring journalists now you might be thinking there's a trade-off in Comfort but no actually there's not at all well there's not so long as you fit the optional adaptive dampers now they'll cost you around £1,000 but they are well worth it because they make this car ride absolutely brilliantly without them it's all right it's just that over imperfection the road you do feel it kind of fidget around a bit it's worse if you have the M sport suspension that's lowered it's also worse if you have the bigger Wheels with run flat tires now those options also affect the amount of Tire raar you get so keep with the smaller rims and the normal tires because then this car is super quiet for cruising around not too much road noise and hardly any wind noise it's very very relaxing as for the engines well most people will go for the one in this car it's the 2 L diesel it's not quite as smooth or as powerful as that that you get in a Mercedes E-Class but it's it's easily good enough it's supposed to do 68 m per gallon though I'm only getting 43 it's it's all right one problem I do have with this engine is that it can be a little bit rattly when you rev it in terms of other engines you can get a 3 l diesel which is smoother and quieter or if you know you don't want that diesel rattle go for one of the petrols one of the 3 l turbo petrols the one in the 540i is rapid now all cars get an automatic gearboxes standard it's got eight speeds and it's brilliant it slushes the gears together when you want it to and when you put your foot down down it responds pretty bluming quickly you can also change the driving modes as well between sport comfort and Eco and if you got those adaptive dampers it'll also slacken off the suspension as well as altering things like this steering weight and the throttle response as for the visibility well it might be a big car but it actually feels smaller than it is and that makes it easy to navigate around town and there's not too many blind spots apart from one that is quite a bit of a blind spot there that huge area now if you want to see for yourself you can click up there to join me for a 360° pass Drive video in this car so far then the new Fire series is really impressive however there are a few annoying things about it here's five the light seats look great but if you wear jeans you'll be forever cleaning them the BMW digital key may seem Hightech until you try and use it and it's as laggy and slow as some old blackbery mobile phone I really like the digital DS but why did BMW feel the need to fit these plasticky surrounds they just look ridiculous when you got the display off there's no underflo storage like you get on a Mercedes E-Class or Audi A6 no no you definitely can't lift that up when it's sunny you can get annoying flickery Reflections in this silver bit of trim it's enough to give you a migraine thankfully this BMW has plenty of cool features which more the make up for all this to help boost aerodynamics and improve fuel efficiency the grill remains shut until the engine needs Cooling and then it opens with a BMW mobile phone a you can actually control the car over the internet from miles away and do things like lock it remotely that's great fun for pranking anyone you let in the car to you can get the car with soft closed door so you don't even have to close them properly the car will do it for you there we go it's like a posh kitchen cupboard the car uses its sa enough to tell when it's about to approach a corner and will change gear accordingly it'll also let you know when you're approaching a junction so you can back off the throttle to help preserve fuel you can park the car in tight Spaces by remote control using the key unfortunately this particular guy doesn't have the option but doesn't matter I've got staff ah you can stay in there all day now if you click up there you can go to car. co.uk for more information and to save an average of £3,300 on a new BMW 5 series so then what's my verdict on this car should you avoid it should you consider it should you short list it or should you go right ahead and buy it well I reckon you should just go right ahead and buy the new 5 Series this is the best car BMW makes if you enjoyed this video please like it and share it and click up there on our logo to subscribe to our Channel down there to watch my 360° passenger Ride video down there to watch my in-depth practicality video and up there for my in-depth entertainment video now did you SWOT the Easter egg in this review it was the box set of the wire in the car's boot kby why because that is five series okay so the joke doesn't work if you're American because you call that Five Seasons but the language is called English Okay Englishthis is the new BMW 5 series and you can think of it as being The Sweet Spot in the BMW saloon car range so the three series that's a bit like the iPad Mini you know it's pretty good but for some people it's going to be too small whereas the seven series that's a bit like the iPad Pro and well they're like carrying a tray around bit silly really whereas this Five series it's like the original iPad it's powerful enough and it's big enough and it is reasonably affordable so it starts from around £36,000 and if you click up there to go to car. co.uk you can PIR offers from dealers and buy a price you're confident in and really this car is going to be big enough for almost everyone the first thing to note is that the doors open nice and wide making it very easy to clumber into the back and once you're here I mean look at this got loads of room you got a question why anyone would actually need a seven series knee room look I can do three fists between my knees and the seat in front that's in my usual driving position Headroom that's good as well people over 6 foot will be fine back here as for sitting three breast in the back well this seat is raised up a bit and this hump in the floor is massive so it's not ideal for the person in the middle seat but the car is quite wide so the people in the outer seats will be fine and then there's the other element of practicality so look we've got airplane style folders there so I can put my iPad away there and Cubbies throughout the car are really generous I can fit a big bottle in this rear door bin there's some more storage here look little cup holders they pop out and you can pay a bit extra and get the car with three-way folding rear seats that brings us onto the boot now rather interestingly the capacity slightly more than that of the larger 7 Series which just seems a bit bizarre but there you go and it is it's a really nice useful size the lift isn't too large to lift stuff over either and the opening is nice and wide you've also got some useful storage areas about the pl however the overall capacity is still 10 L less than on the Mercedes E-Class is that going to bother you who knows now if you click up there you can watch my in-depth practicality video see how much stuff we could squeeze in this car's boot how easy it is to fit a child seat in the back and what it's like with three adults in the rear seats now I mentioned the Mercedes E-Class in terms of the design I don't think this Fire series quite stands out as much it doesn't have the Elegance of the Merced is but it's still a nice looking thing and on the inside I have to say BMW's designers have done a fantastic job it is classy without being overly showy and it's all very easy to use plus I like the seating position me it's just spot on you can rest your elbow there and there and just cruise around for hours on end totally comfortable I can't F the quality either just looking everywhere looking around trying to find cheap bits of plastic I can't find any none at all this feels expensive inside and it's actually well equipped as well so as standard you get the big full-on professional navi system you get digital driver's display and this brings me on to the new high drive so they've updated it so you can control it in the usual way using the swivel wheel you can press a button here and talk to the car and it even understands a brummy accent you can use it as a touchcreen as well if you want to just go back and there gesture control so I can wave my finger around to do things like increase the volume though it's a bit temperamental that and yeah I think it's a bit of a gimmick but if you want to see more detail on this Entertainment System click it there to watch my detailed review of it it's really really impressive that's the sensible stuff dealt with now for some fun and the 5 series rear drive setup helps with this BMW lets you turn the stability control off all the way which allows you to act like a holig gun in your diesel powered executive Saloon it's a very very important buying criteria that not while you'd never actually turn the stability control off especially not on the road my Tom Foolery does illustrate how well balanced and predictable the Five series is and for those one in maximum grip it's also available with all-wheel drive but there's more you need to know this BMW 5 series is larger than the old version yet somehow it manages to be up to 100 kg lighter in fact it's the lightest car in its class and that helps the handling it feels well not like a sports car but it's certainly agile enough and if you want to have some fun you can do the steering's responsive though it doesn't really have much in the way of feel but that that doesn't really matter to anyone other than motoring journalists now you might be thinking there's a trade-off in Comfort but no actually there's not at all well there's not so long as you fit the optional adaptive dampers now they'll cost you around £1,000 but they are well worth it because they make this car ride absolutely brilliantly without them it's all right it's just that over imperfection the road you do feel it kind of fidget around a bit it's worse if you have the M sport suspension that's lowered it's also worse if you have the bigger Wheels with run flat tires now those options also affect the amount of Tire raar you get so keep with the smaller rims and the normal tires because then this car is super quiet for cruising around not too much road noise and hardly any wind noise it's very very relaxing as for the engines well most people will go for the one in this car it's the 2 L diesel it's not quite as smooth or as powerful as that that you get in a Mercedes E-Class but it's it's easily good enough it's supposed to do 68 m per gallon though I'm only getting 43 it's it's all right one problem I do have with this engine is that it can be a little bit rattly when you rev it in terms of other engines you can get a 3 l diesel which is smoother and quieter or if you know you don't want that diesel rattle go for one of the petrols one of the 3 l turbo petrols the one in the 540i is rapid now all cars get an automatic gearboxes standard it's got eight speeds and it's brilliant it slushes the gears together when you want it to and when you put your foot down down it responds pretty bluming quickly you can also change the driving modes as well between sport comfort and Eco and if you got those adaptive dampers it'll also slacken off the suspension as well as altering things like this steering weight and the throttle response as for the visibility well it might be a big car but it actually feels smaller than it is and that makes it easy to navigate around town and there's not too many blind spots apart from one that is quite a bit of a blind spot there that huge area now if you want to see for yourself you can click up there to join me for a 360° pass Drive video in this car so far then the new Fire series is really impressive however there are a few annoying things about it here's five the light seats look great but if you wear jeans you'll be forever cleaning them the BMW digital key may seem Hightech until you try and use it and it's as laggy and slow as some old blackbery mobile phone I really like the digital DS but why did BMW feel the need to fit these plasticky surrounds they just look ridiculous when you got the display off there's no underflo storage like you get on a Mercedes E-Class or Audi A6 no no you definitely can't lift that up when it's sunny you can get annoying flickery Reflections in this silver bit of trim it's enough to give you a migraine thankfully this BMW has plenty of cool features which more the make up for all this to help boost aerodynamics and improve fuel efficiency the grill remains shut until the engine needs Cooling and then it opens with a BMW mobile phone a you can actually control the car over the internet from miles away and do things like lock it remotely that's great fun for pranking anyone you let in the car to you can get the car with soft closed door so you don't even have to close them properly the car will do it for you there we go it's like a posh kitchen cupboard the car uses its sa enough to tell when it's about to approach a corner and will change gear accordingly it'll also let you know when you're approaching a junction so you can back off the throttle to help preserve fuel you can park the car in tight Spaces by remote control using the key unfortunately this particular guy doesn't have the option but doesn't matter I've got staff ah you can stay in there all day now if you click up there you can go to car. co.uk for more information and to save an average of £3,300 on a new BMW 5 series so then what's my verdict on this car should you avoid it should you consider it should you short list it or should you go right ahead and buy it well I reckon you should just go right ahead and buy the new 5 Series this is the best car BMW makes if you enjoyed this video please like it and share it and click up there on our logo to subscribe to our Channel down there to watch my 360° passenger Ride video down there to watch my in-depth practicality video and up there for my in-depth entertainment video now did you SWOT the Easter egg in this review it was the box set of the wire in the car's boot kby why because that is five series okay so the joke doesn't work if you're American because you call that Five Seasons but the language is called English Okay English\n"