BMW i5 M The Future is Now with the All-New 5 Series

BMW i5 M60 with M Sportpack Pro

This is the all-new BMW 5 Series, it comes in different powertrains and no matter if combustion engine or here the all-electric BMW i5, it will look the same. A different approach than the recently launched Mercedes E-Class which is then in the EV version, the EQE. Here BMW puts it all on one platform, it has pros and cons, and we'll discuss it in 4K, full screen, full length. Let's go here with the i5 M60, the sporty version of the all-electric one, and its features the M Sport package and also the M Sport package Pro that also gives you the black double kidney here which also is coming here in this illumination, the Iconic Glow, that's an option, pretty spectacular, isn't it?

Headlamps with a slim daytime running light integration also with multiple high beam functions and the M60 also has these black accentuations all over the vehicle. This cool color here is called Fire Red.

Length, Cd value, suspension

Side profile... one, two, three-box design is rather typical business sedan look. This is also a differentiation to the new purpose-built EV platforms which look like a raindrop or something. What would you prefer as a customer? Tell me in the comments. I personally... a more like this angular German Bauhaus design, you know what I mean? In length, it has slightly been increased by 10 centimeters or 4 inches, now at 5.06 meters or 199 inches. Wheels, 18 to a maximum of 21 inches, are the biggest available in this M style. Wow, this looks pretty amazing, right? And it also features here the red brake calipers with the special M brake, which has a little bit more performance.


This vehicle here is also featured with the optional carbon package, then you also get these carbon fiber elements, for example, at the side mirrors. Suspension and rear axle steering come in an optional package. So, that means you have a base suspension, you have a fixed M suspension for stiffer driving if you like that, and then optionally you have the adaptive dampers which are in combination with rear-axle steering, rear wheels turn in the opposite direction, the front wheels up to 2.5 degrees, and then you can also get this adaptive suspension in an M setup for a little bit stiffer riding. And you know you get the best briefing here at AKMotoblog, the i5, the electric version, and the plug-in hybrid version will get rear axle air suspension to level out this niveau at the rear axle because of the increased weight by the batteries. Also interesting, isn't it?

Rear design, again, it's always the same no matter if you go all-electric or in the combustion engine side, and I think it's cool that you have the same look all across the vehicle, and my experience is that people do not want this,  I go electric, so I want a completely different vehicle design. No, people want a nice design on the exterior no matter if electric or not, isn't it? And I think here, really horizontal, slim stress, looks really cool, the M60 version, once again with sporty diffuser-alike situations in the lower part.

Turning indicators

Now, we made it a little bit darker for you to see the turn indicators, which are really widely drawn, good to see, and look cool, doesn't it? And in front, you see this pulsing effect like a heartbeat. When you hit it on the interior here, you have this show effect also across the cockpit, wow!

Powertrains: i5, PHEV, petrol, diesel

Does the i5 have a frunk? It doesn't, but it has a very nice M engine cover right here. Battery size, 81-kilowatt hours, so it's not as large as in the i7, for example. They could just not fit more battery here in this very platform here. The real-world range will be something between 400 to 500 kilometers, so 250 to 300 miles depending on the condition. Pre-conditioning of the battery is included, the preheating, independent preheating, and also, heat pump all comes as standard equipment.

Here, the electric version either as rear-wheel drive, as an entry version, or as an all-wheel drive model also counts for the M60, and that is then the quickest overall, 3.8 seconds to 100 kilometers an hour or 62 miles an hour. A plug-in hybrid, four or six-cylinder petrol as a base, and also pure four or six-cylinder petrol engines as we know from BMW, just that the six-cylinder petrol engine will not be available in the EU. Diesel side, also four and six cylinders, and probably a V8 plugin-hybrid for the M5 model.

Recharging for the i5, 11, or 22 kilowatts AC, 205 kilowatt DC, and means a quick charging from 10% to 80% state of charge in around 30 minutes. If you want more information on the combustion engines and the hybrid, we have a full engine lineup in our pinned comment, check it out.

Fire Red vs Brooklyn Grey vsSophisto Grey

And now the rain outside stopped just for a second, and we cleaned this vehicle here outside now, so you get an outside perspective of the lines, the silhouette of the vehicle. What do you think about the design of the new 5 Series? Tell me in the comments. And here, we have a different color for you in Brooklyn Gray. This is one of my favorite colors, I really love it, pretty cool, isn't it? This one does feature the M Sport Package, but not the M Sport Package Pro, and that means here, the outer frame around the kidney is bright or let's say this matte silver look. Then you can also even better see these vertical fins.

We also have the illumination here. Overall, I think I like it better in this spec here with a bright kidney and maybe also a brighter color, but the red wasn't also too bad, right? Wheels here, we have also 21-inch wheels, so massive styling, and in this side profile, this brighter color also gives you a better perspective of how the shape of the vehicle is. These dark frames around the window, by the way, you do not have to go for them, you can also de-pick them that you have a bright frame around. And another rear perspective here of the i5 eDrive40 rear-wheel drive electric version, the Brooklyn Gray, and the M Sport Package, once again, with the black accentuations, but if this would be a combustion engine, it would look the same.

The rear-wheel-drive version of the i5, by the way, 6 seconds is the acceleration figure here, and the top speed 190 kilometers an hour or 120 miles an hour, and the M60 i5 is even 230 kilometers an hour top speed, so that's 140 miles an hour. And this one here in Sophisto Gray without the M Sport Pack, so this would be a base 5 series, in this case, it's also the plug-in hybrid, we have the bright frame around the kidney, vertical fins inside there, and not such a sporty look in the lower part, so we have less black accentuations, but I think it works also well here in this base look.

And here you can see the base headlamps, normal LED without matrix and without adaptive function. Here in the side profile, you have 19-inch wheels for this very vehicle, so you can see how it looks with smaller wheels. I think 19 also works well, 18 would maybe be a little bit too small. Here, of course, you have more dampening from the tires, this case then also the bright frames around that have a more traditional, more elegant styling, and you can see this contrast with the stamped in 5 a little bit better. And in the rear, you can see also bright inserts here for the base version instead of the black with the M Sport Pack.

Interior M Sport pack

Key fob here with the M colors, and then the door handles still come towards you, so there's like physical feedback. The door closing sound is decent, nothing special though, and inside of the doors, nice soft materials, for example, here also at the top, and the integration of the ambient lighting is already here. Let me directly take a test seat in there, nice soft cushioning, and soon more to the materials with 189 or 6'2". I have still some headroom left, and there will be different panoramic roofs available. This one here is the one that goes all the way through with a shade you can also put there. On the US market, you will also get a smaller one that you can open or optional this one. What do you think about the door handle from the inside with this opening to the bottom part? I think it's actually quite handy, so why not, feels good.

Veganza seats and cockpit

These are the new Veganza seats, so they're all animal-free, really soft, high class, and also at least at the same durability. And in the M60, you have these Alcantara inserts, but they are perforated, and behind them, you can see the M colors. That's a beautiful idea. And these new seats are not only available with seat heating but also with seat cooling. The steering wheel is usually also animal free unless it is this one, the optional M steering wheel, which comes with the M Sport package, and then it has the additional spoke there too.

 

Interior cockpit overview, a lot of ambient lighting integration, and this curved screen layout, two single screens, these are then. The build quality, what you see, what you feel, and so on, is really high class. They are on top of the competition, and it used to be the other way around, so good job in this respect. I'm glad we still have some real physical buttons, for example, here at the steering wheel for the cruise control, and also on the right side, where we can control the digital instruments. There, for example, you can change the whole layout of the digital instruments. You can also get a head-up display with different views available.

Ambient lighting

So tell me, which ambient light color would you actually set in the BMW 5 Series? You know, I'm always a fan of blue, but this looks also quite cool, doesn't it? Yeah, either this individual thing, or you go to the My Mode selection. For example, when you go to the Sports Mode, it changes to red, or this Efficient Mode changes to blue, and also how it builds up there, looks always pretty amazing. And if you press it here, you hear it also that the roof also goes open. Relax would be the other way around.

Now, the roof closes again. That's why you hear the audio of the roof closing or Digital Art. It goes all the way closed and opens with the roof when you switch it through that quickly. BMW OS 8.5 infotainment Infotainment system, OS 8.5, with this new home screen. The car's internal GPS is actually also quite responsive, so very quick system. Yes, you have a lot of different apps you have to get used to it. Oh, even AirConsole Games. And for example, when you have the i5 and you're doing a recharging stop, you can also use the AirConsole, and then use your smartphone, maybe one or even two with two players, and with this connection, you can also play games, like this kart gaming here.

Other than that, wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. The integration here is really cool, very crisp screen. So I like this modern infotainment system indeed. Yeah, besides the control for the climate here, this is the seat heating and so on, the heated steering wheel, and this is the whole climate unit here, the digital one. This could be done easier, but for a digital solution, at least it is kind of self-explanatory. Lower middle console here with the inductive Middle console charging pad, and it has these holes that suck away the hot air because it doesn't overheat then.

And then you have here the adaptive cup holders. And I'm glad to be able to control the infotainment system also from here, still while driving. This crystalline effect, however, is an option I would not go for, because it can blind, you know, you while driving. And here, well, you don't have a real shifting lever anymore, more this integrated solution. It is clear and small but doesn't convey so much sportiness. And finally, this split Rear seats opening of the armrest.

And talking about luxury functions, it does even feature a rear sunshade. The rear seating area still has this middle tunnel, also because of the platform share and the i5 uses this then for batteries.

The rear climate unit is now digital like this. Here the vent strength, that's a little bit too complicated, I think, where you have to press there. Testing the seats in the rear, by the way, you have this shade here, manual shade for the rear passengers like this. And then the wheelbase has been increased slightly, and you have these very nice recesses here for the back part of the seat. So there is actually decent legroom also when I'm driving as a tall driver. These are iPad holders here, a good solution with USB-C charging, and headroom in the rear. There's still some lefty with 189 or 6'2".

Overall, quite a decent comfort for the rear passengers. So this is also a step forward. Funny, by the way, this additional, oh, the small shade here for the rear for the secondary Trunk/boot window. Trunk or boot area, 520 liters for all versions except the i5 here at 490 liters, a small compromise. It's not as high, just a little bit, but even the plug-in hybrid will feature the same size as the other versions. Here the length is decent, 1 meter 10 or 43 inches. The limitation is a little bit in the width about 90 centimeters or 35 inches, and the height here for the i5, 45 centimeters or 18 inches, is a little bit higher than for the other versions.

You can see you have a two-thirds, one-third split. You can release the seats from here and then fold them, and underneath we have storage, for example, also for charging cables. M Sport brown interior trim Second interior for today with the Viganza seats in brown. Different colors are available and always with that perforation, and here we can also see in this different interior trim, here we have a bright aluminum style. That looks quite cool, also with the structure, and overall it looks then a little bit brighter on the interior. One more quick look at the rear seats, and this one here is also equipped with the panoramic roof, the fixed one, but with a very wide view.

Base interior with bright comfortable seats

This interior here is featuring more interesting elements. First of all, these are the comfort seats. They are a little bit more wide and open and so on, and I also feel that the material here is also a little bit softer. These were also the Viganza seats, and when you don't go for the M Sport Pack, then you also have the base steering wheel. This has no spoke in the lower part.

We know the steering wheel from the BMW iX, and this one then is also a vegan material, and it's pretty soft, actually has a very nice grip, so that will also be possible, and we also have matte wood as a decor element. One more look at the bright rear seats. I think here this ivory styling for the Viganza seats looks even cooler, doesn't it? Details and sustainability Really nice, by the way, where we have these stamped in five logos here all over the vehicle, for example, also at the B pillars from the inside here.

There, for example, exterior paints available, the matte ones that do not include raw oil. They are working with bio oil, basically. You know, at home, it's a good argument.  we have to go for the cool matte paint because of sustainability and so on,

you know, yeah. And of course, about the interior, not using animal skin on the interior saves 85% of CO2e emissions, so for the interior part, it's the biggest thing you can do for the profit of humans, animals, and the environment. What do I think?

Well, I think it's first of all really good that they did not go for the iX or 7 Series beaver mono kidney, but still a rather traditional look and also quite cool with the illumination there. This overall three-box design works very well for me. I think more beautiful than this, "Hey, I'm an electric vehicle," look, you know. Yes, as for aerodynamics, of course, for example, Mercedes EQE is done better with this, you know, more raindrop design and so on, but we'll see about the efficiency later on in the driving test.

 

 

Post a Comment

0 Comments