Driving impressions of the E60 530xi

[China Man]

Hello All,

As I promised to Phong, I wanna give everybody here my impression of the E60 530xi I picked up last month. The first thing you would notice about this car after driving it is how smooth and powerful the 3.0 inline-six is. Getting a 30 horsepower boost really makes a difference, especially after saving weight, as well . Power is always there when you need it, whether it be off the line, or at highway speeds. The second thing I noticed was the size difference between the E39 and E60. What you see on the outside makes a huge difference on the interior . The cabin is much more spacious than the previous generation 5er.

The idrive of course is a bit difficult to navigate if you've never used it before. However, once you get to know it better, it's actually quite intuitive. The navigation works well, although it's not much different than the E53 now that it has perspective mode! One thing I noticed about the navigation, though. When you're looking for a point of interest in a specific area, apparently you aren't allowed to search for it by name anymore. You have to keep scrolling down, and it's sorted by distance from the center of the city you are searching in. Sorry, BMW, but that just sucks @#($%*$(#. I like the E53/E38 setup where you can enter the letters of the name of the place you're searching for. The navigation system includes the extended voice system, which allows you to control everything inside that idrive, from climate control, to changing the radio station. I guess that is the ultimate for the lazy person...lol. Inside the idrive is a menu to let you control the seat heater distribution, whether you want more heat on your butt or on your back, a feature which I thought was pretty cool, although I would rarely use it.

Here comes something I am on the fence about. Build quality. Yes, I know it's a BMW and I have to expect SOME electrical gremlins. So let me start my rant. Since taking delivery of this automobile, I've experienced 3 false flat tire warnings (2 of which couldn't be fixed by resetting the flat tire monitor), an airbag warning, window anti-trap feature malfunction, coolant level too low, the "fasten seat belt" beep keep beeping for the duration of the drive, even though I buckled my safety belt. This was all supposedly fixed with an update of the CIP (I forgot what CIP stands for, it's what controls everything in the car). One trip to the stealer, and I have been gremlin free for the last 2 weeks. lol. On to the raving. I noticed certain things about this car that make you notice how much thought BMW put into the design. I drove 850km yesterday from long island to Toronto; the first 400km of the ride was lovely, constant speeds of 140km/h or more (thank you, valentine one, and everybody else that was driving faster than me on the thruway lol), I ran into a big snowstorm. The snow was so heavy at times that I couldn't even see the vehicle directly in front of me. Needless to say, no more 140km/h. (I saw over 10 spin outs). The x-drive never missed a beat! The DSC light didn't flash once! The point of this rambling is, after driving through all those snowed-on-and-salted-sanded-on roads, nowhere behind a rubber seal (even under the hood), was there a bit of snow salt or sand. Behind the door seals, the car looks like it has never been driven, and even the engine compartment remains spotless. The automobile is quieter than my E38 750iL, and the 750 has double paned glass! Yes, I know it's unfair to compare a car from 01 to a current generation car, but I just found it to be quite surprising! The doors close with the sound that one would expect from a german luxury car manufacturer。 The logic 7 sound system is great, and IMO, rivals the mark levinson systems that Lexus has in their vehicles (somebody might have something to say about that comment). It even has ID3 tag displays for MP3 compressed audio CD's.

Has anybody begun to ask, when is this thread going to end? (the answer is, pretty soon). One last comment I want to make. Before this trip to Toronto, I was driving the E60 most of the time. After climbing back into the E53 and E38, there is something about the X5 and 7 series that have me still loving them. There seems to be a more natural feeling to how the E53 and E38 drive that is lacking in the E60. Unfortunately to me the E60 feels over-assisted, with the brake by wire and throttle by wire. This is only noticeable when moving from one vehicle to another. After driving the E60 for a while, you get used to it again, and like it.

Attached are two quick pics I took this morning in the -15C weather before I went out for your viewing pleasure. You'll see what 850km of driving, and 400km of snow storm will do to your car. It looks 10 times worse in person. Note: Look at the rear end of the car, I didn't clean the lights, nor the trunk. The top of the trunk is virtually clean, and the taillights are still very visible, only a slight coating of white, unlike the side of the car. (This is one thing that drives me crazy about the X5, how easy the rear of the car gets).

rambling over!

PS...I got pelted by salt trucks 5 times .......
PPS... The headlights were cleaned after the snow stopped...they were frozen solid with ice/snow, only the foglights produced light!

[TQ2K]

Originally Posted by paomien

Hello All,

The first thing you would notice about this car after driving it is how smooth and powerful the 3.0 inline-six is. Getting a 30 horsepower boost really makes a difference, especially after saving weight, as well . Power is always there when you need it, whether it be off the line, or at highway speeds. The second thing I noticed was the size difference between the E39 and E60. What you see on the outside makes a huge difference on the interior . The cabin is much more spacious than the previous generation 5er.

The idrive of course is a bit difficult to navigate if you've never used it before. However, once you get to know it better, it's actually quite intuitive. The navigation works well, although it's not much different than the E53 now that it has perspective mode!

Here comes something I am on the fence about. Build quality. Yes, I know it's a BMW and I have to expect SOME electrical gremlins.

The logic 7 sound system is great, and IMO, rivals the mark levinson systems that Lexus has in their vehicles (somebody might have something to say about that comment). It even has ID3 tag displays for MP3 compressed audio CD's.

Has anybody begun to ask, when is this thread going to end? (the answer is, pretty soon). One last comment I want to make. Before this trip to Toronto, I was driving the E60 most of the time. After climbing back into the E53 and E38, there is something about the X5 and 7 series that have me still loving them. There seems to be a more natural feeling to how the E53 and E38 drive that is lacking in the E60. Unfortunately to me the E60 feels over-assisted, with the brake by wire and throttle by wire.

- Although I don't own an E60, I agree to some important points that you have given and having been able to drive a 530xi for 3 days as a loaner it doesn't feel like a drivers' car anymore compared to the X5 and E39 M5. But it is indeed comfortable to drive and handling is still there but not too much driver involvement... If feels safer to some extent, maybe because the side walls are higher and makes you feel you're shielded more from outside elements... Just my .02

[motordavid]

Jon, well written review. Glad you enjoy your new ride...fineazz looking car and crib!
BR,md

[rayxi]

Good review. We test drove a 545i before buying our X5 and I agree with your comments regarding the differences in road feel between the two. If BMW made a 545xi it might have been a closer call.

My impressions of the 545i:
- Lots of power.
- Phyically roomy but slightly cramped visually.
- Very quiet.
- Styling still take some getting use to, especially the lights.
- The self-centering turn signal drove me nuts.

[Stewthebassman]

Nice review. I have a 325xi and I agree, the system is simply amazing and confidence-inspiring in the worst weather.

I'm glad you love your car....sounds like you do some serious mileage?

Those glitches suck....but hopefully you get good service and they won't bother you much longer.

[China Man]

Originally Posted by rayxi

Good review. We test drove a 545i before buying our X5 and I agree with your comments regarding the differences in road feel between the two. If BMW made a 545xi it might have been a closer call.

My impressions of the 545i:
- Lots of power.
- Phyically roomy but slightly cramped visually.
- Very quiet.
- Styling still take some getting use to, especially the lights.
- The self-centering turn signal drove me nuts.

A 545xi (now 550) would be great! They're probably waiting for the new 7 series to have all wheel drive in their V8 sedans.

[China Man]

Originally Posted by Stewthebassman

sounds like you do some serious mileage?

Those glitches suck....but hopefully you get good service and they won't bother you much longer.

Yes I do drive some serious mileage, when I'm in the states, I did 14 round trippers Long Island - Toronto in 2004 with my E53, add that on top of my around town and tri-state driving, and you have about 30K on the E53 in 04 about 13K on the E38 between 04 and 05, and 3K on the E60 since Jan 06...

So far so good with the glitches, got a low coolant level signal again this morning, it seems to only happen during super cold weather starts; however, the coolant is at the max level for cold ...

[rayxi]

Originally Posted by paomien

A 545xi (now 550) would be great! They're probably waiting for the new 7 series to have all wheel drive in their V8 sedans.

For me a 550xi wagon would be a slam dunk! I haven't heard of any plans for xDrive in the 7 series. Doesn't seem to fit the market segment IMO.

BTW, I love the paving stones on your driveway!

[Kewl X5]

Great review.

Anyhow, Harman International makes stereo systems for many car manufacturers now.


Harman International ownes Harman/Kardon, Mark Levison, and JBL Audio.

Also, Mercedes-Benz is starting to use Logic7 (from H/K) on their cars as well (they are getting away from Bose).

BMW has stuck with H/K and now with Logic7, the stereo is decent and probably just as decent as the Lexus's Mark Levison.

So for what it's worth, it is all the same company.

[China Man]

Originally Posted by rayxi

For me a 550xi wagon would be a slam dunk! I haven't heard of any plans for xDrive in the 7 series. Doesn't seem to fit the market segment IMO.

is that right? I heard when the new-body 7 comes out in MY09, there will be xdrive available. I believe it would be a smart move, as MB already has 4 matic in their S class (which is the only reason why S still sells in the northeast US...since the S became available in 4matic, it's rare to see a non 4-matic S, unless you're talking AMG)

550xi wagon would be great! MB has a V8 wagon.. the E500 4matic touring ..... although the E61 530xi wagon isn't too shabby, either... drove one with sport, nav, premium, cold weather, and PDC ... doesn't even seem like you're driving a wagon, unless you look at your rearview mirror...and the power close trunk is great