Test Drive: BMW 523i

[lamborghini]

Hey guys,

around mid march, I was in mumbai for a week and that whole week, we spent discussing my mom's next car.
The options were a camry or an accord or the Teana but for fun's sake, I TD'd the BMW 5 series as well.
I called up Navnit Motors on saturday, the day I was going to leave and tried arranging for a TD. Since I had called them up at the last minute, it wasn't that easy arranging for a TD but the people at Navnit were very helpful and arranged for one, even though it was going to be late in the evening. Of all the dealerships I called, Navnit and Audi were the most courteous and went out of the way to get me a TD car on saturday itself. Sadly, I could not TD the A6.

The 523i came at around 8.30PM and was dirty on the outside, but i attributed it to a day of heavy traveling all over mumbai for the sake of various TDs.

Design:
When I first saw the car up close, I was bowled over. Even though it was the boring silver color, it looked HOT. This is the type of car a young executive would want to drive. Some features that I loved were the projector headlamps and the tail lamps. The car has a very mean look to it, a sporty yet elegant look and I loved it.

Interiors:

the interiors were draped in gray leather and the dashboard had a wooden finish. I wasn't a big fan of it and asked if it would be possible to get silver with tan leather. Unfortunately, that is reserved only for the M5.
However, the build quality was amazing and I loved the concept of the START button. The interiors had a nice sporty theme, which was marred by the wooden finish.
Some features i noticed about the interiors -
- It is bigger than the E class.
- Seats are mad comfortable
- Start button is amazing!
- I loved the gearshift. It is like a joystick, unlike the other conventional automatics.

Ride and Handling:

My mom was accompanying me for a short testdrive before I could go on a proper one.
I took the car around to the lane behind my house. I have listed a few things I noticed about the ride and handling-
- It is pretty comfortable, even with the RFT. My mom found it more comfortable than the Camry TD vehicle which had come the previous day.
- The handling is amazing. The car seems to just build up around you. The steering feel is amazing and the grip and stability offered are mind blowing. I have never driven such a well handling car ever!
- the one let down in the near perfect driving experience were the brakes. I don't know why, but they had a very animated feel towards them. Anyone else experienced such a thing?

Performance:

I was driving the base variant, the 523i, so I didn't have any expectations about the performance. However, when i ripped it, it simply blew me away.
I touched about an 80 in the stretch between Air India and Mantralaya, when I had to stop for the light. I had read various reviews about the performance of the 523i being decent but trust me, in contrast to the base variant of the E class, the E200K, the performance of the BMW is simply amazing.
The engine was pretty refined.

Features i particularly liked about the car:

- Start button
- Gearshift
- Parking sensors. I found it pretty useful, specially in traffic conditions.
- the brochure. In comparison to all the other ones I have received, from Mercedes and Audi, I liked the BMW one the best.

I didn't get a chance to check out the music system, but I am guessing it is pretty good. I also never got a chance to try out the idrive and i am pretty intimidated by it.

I have finally understood why BMWs are the ultimate driving machine! Damn! Hoping to go on a longer drive soon.

[vkochar]

Good report there Lambo !!

You sure are lucky to drive a 5 series - I have never driven a 3 series even !!

But once I did drive a Beemer M something sports coupe in UK for a short spin. It was amazing

[Sahil]

Great review Lambo...and its speaks highly of the 5 coming from an E class owner.

I think you test drove the same car i did from Navnit,review (523i & 525i Pushed to the Limit!)i really like the color combination and went in for the exact same since white wasnt available then... but biege interiors on silver..eerr...i am not a big fan...all my other cars have biege interiors anyways so was quite sick of it...quite like the grey,good change.

But the 523i just didn't do it for me, it was good no doubt but not what you expect from a BMW if you are power hungry like me. I even test drove the 525i but landed up with the 525d instead.... If you are already crowning BMW the ultimate driving machine based on the 523i, wait till you get a piece of the diesel !

Suprising you complained of the brakes, i am sure there was something wrong with the TD car in that case because the brakes are brilliant.

And its good you didnt test out the sound system coz that would add a point to the E class ... Although the sound system is good, the Mercedes has a deeper bass effect.

So do i see the E class getting replaced soon ?

[GTO - Touring]

Someone who is used to the E Class ends up impressed with the 5....that's saying something. Great review, Lambo. The 523i may be the base version, but there is nothing wrong with it. It has more than enough power, enough even to go for a spirited drive to that hill station.

I have been impressed by the braking ability of the 5 series. The pedal is well modulated.

Originally Posted by Sahil

I even test drove the 525i but landed up with the 525d instead.... If you are already crowning BMW the ultimate driving machine based on the 523i, wait till you get a piece of the diesel !

I'd probably buy the 525D from that segment too. But high-revving petrols have a charm that is irreplaceable by diesels.

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by GTO - Touring

Someone who is used to the E Class ends up impressed with the 5....that's saying something. Great review, Lambo. The 523i may be the base version, but there is nothing wrong with it. It has more than enough power, enough even to go for a spirited drive to that hill station.

I have been impressed by the braking ability of the 5 series. The pedal is well modulated.



I'd probably buy the 525D from that segment too. But high-revving petrols have a charm that is irreplaceable by diesels.

I completly agree but the torque surge the diesel gives is irreplacable too unless ofcourse its a turbo charged petrol engine.
I have driven the 530i too and although performance figures are similar to the 525d, the diesel just feel a lot faster and more fun to drive thanks to the turbo.
Redline a 525d and see how petrol-like it behaves,i call it the 2nd ghost turbo sitting past the 4000rpm mark.

[lamborghini]

Thanks guys -
@Sahil - I was talking of a silver center console with tan - dark red leather. See the combination on an M5 and it looks hot!!
Well, talking of replacements, I think a gray 5 series might already be in mumbai awaiting my arrival as a replacement for the accord. The 525d that too.

@GTO - the braking is perfectly fine but i thought it was a bit animated. I guess modulated would be a better word.