BMW 5 Series 520d Facelift First Drive Review

Offering a boost of 8kW/10bhp, the 48V mild-hybrid claims to improve power delivery as well as efficiency at cruising speeds. It also regenerates some energy when braking. But we found it to work inconspicuously without making its presence known in day-to-day driving.

Getting back to the engine – the four-banger diesel is refined yet it’s no slouch. It might not be as punchy as the 530d, but it has enough torque supply right from the word go and there’s never a feeling of lack of power when pushing through urban commutes or stretching some legs out on the highway. While the motor happily potters around between 1,500-2,000rpm effortlessly, smash the throttle hard and it caters a strong pull all the way to the red-line. It won’t pin the passengers in their seats, but it’s enough to keep the driver entertained.

Past the 3,000rpm mark is when the motor starts to get vocal but never does it feel vibey or unrefined. Its linear performance makes this diesel deceptively quick. In our test figures, the 0-60kmph came up in 3.46 seconds and 0-100kmph took a brisk 7.54 seconds. Even roll-on acceleration was impressive as the 520d took 4.94 seconds to accelerate from 20kmph to 80kmph in third gear, and 6.05 seconds for 40-100kmph in fourth gear.

Working in tandem with the well-engineered motor is an eight-speed automatic transmission. It’s a torque converter that remains seamless when driving sedately but can make its gearshifts known when pushed hard – especially when in kick-down for some quick overtakes. Otherwise, the eight-speed Steptronic hits all the right notes all the time. And there’re paddle-shifters provided behind the wheel too, for when you decide to play around with gearshifts.

Needless to say, the 520d, too, gets driving modes namely Eco Pro, Comfort, Sport, and Individual. Switching the buttons sequentially from Eco Pro to Sport – the throttle response, damper setting, and steering feel get sharper and more responsive. And in Individual, the settings are claimed to adapt on their own depending on the driving situation, but this is another thing we’ll have to take BMW’s word for it as it didn’t seem to make any noticeable difference.

Riding on 245/45 R18 Michelin Pilot Sport, the grip levels are impressive too when pushed hard. Especially through corners, it sticks like no sedan weighing close to 1.8tonnes would be able to. But most of its weight is felt when chucked suddenly. Even the steering wheel has a certain heft to it but it’s easy to operate – thumbs up from those who prefer taking the wheel more often. It’s got one of those adaptive steerings that changes response depending on speed. So going three full turns lock-to-lock when stationary or at town speeds feels slow, especially in the Eco and Comfort model. It’s much better and sharper in the Sport mode which is where we’d prefer to adjust its setting all the time.

Lastly, it’s a low-slung sedan – which means there’s always a mindful of scraping it over some of the improperly made speed-breakers or large potholes. But we are happy to report that most of those ill-shaped breakers were overcome with relative ease with only a few posing a serious problem to the underbelly.

Even the seats are large and accommodating, with comfortable support in all the right places. We found the larger 12.3-inch touchscreen a bit hard to reach, especially when the seatbelts are on. But there’s the characteristic iDrive controller dash that comes in handy.

This newer screen is not only bigger but throws out all the possible information, navigation, and vehicle settings and status that you could ask for. Adding an all-digital display for the driver’s screen is another welcome addition, but the charm of an old-school analogue dial will surely be missed.

As most of the owners would be spending a majority of time in the second row, it needs to be comfortable and spacious. Spacious it is with a good amount of legroom, a decent headspace, and a large cabin for two to sit in comfort. Making a third passenger sit in the middle would be farfetched though. And if we were to nitpick, we’d have preferred a slightly more reclined angle for the backrest by a few more degrees. And some more gizmos and trinkets at the back to keep the passengers entertained wouldn’t hurt either. Lastly, the boot is large at 530litres and is more than sufficient with the spare wheel shoved underneath.

There’s also a whole gamut of driver-assist and safety features available as standard in the 520d Luxury Line. But we’d have liked to see the ventilated front seat, a heads-up display, as well as panoramic sunroof to oomph up the in-car opulence.