Not that I'm prying. I admire the looks of the new z4 that I saw in a magazine newstand last night (thats coming out next year), and checked the bimmefest forum for more news/pictures. I came across one thread and it seems the M is making an impression on the other side.

http://www.bimmerfest.com/foru...05755

Quote:The 5 is still best choice in this class for the enthusiast.

At this point that's a subjective statement at best, prejudicial at worse, old perceptions die hard, BMW sure is counting on that as they're still trading an awful lot on brand loyalty.

Head to head performance tests do NOT show the five as the best choice for enthusiasts, the increasing use of electronic nannying has sealed that fate, the new japanese cars have closed the gap - this from a guy who been a german car guy for 32 years (and still on the fence wrt my next car, which will be either an E90, S2k, or new Miata - most likely).

Can I quote this? If it's not legal, cross it out anytime.
Modified by Edong t5 at 8:28 AM 11/13/2005

That post that the person that said that is a moron.....

retard with bimmer wrote:I've driven all models of both cars, and sorry but the little nissan with its overdone interior and lifeless handling wouldn't get $35k from me, let alone $50k or more. The 5 is still best choice in this class for the enthusiast.

OVERDONE INTERIOR?? LIFELESS HANDLING? FROM A BMW GUY? Great scott, what the hell is he thinking... That is a major contradiction.

Impressive that some of these guys that were considering 6series and 5 series, which are SIGNIFICANTLY more expensive.. Theyre finally realzing you dont have to spend big bucks to get superior performance, AND have extra reliability which BMW owners are not accustomed to.

somone who knows what hes talking about wrote:From my perspective in this case cheaper is probably better. A quick build up in the BMW web site puts a 525i with SP and Xenons in the $48K MSRP range. To me that's a little rich for a car that puts out 215 HP especially when you can get the M35 with 280 HP for $40 - $41K. For my purposes I'd sacrifice a little handling for more power. Plus, IMO, the M35 doesn't look like it was beaten with a fugly stick. If the "enthusiast" wants to spend that kind of bread for the BMW badge I say more power to him.

I cant agree with that any more.....

As said in one of the posts, with the 5 series BMW Is relying a lot on their heritage and its PROVING that heritage is not everything..... People (well not all) are not idiots, theyre gonna buy something that tis the best......

Very entertaining....nice post.

Its no secret BMW is losing their foothold on the market...and some of those guys know it, and some just dont want to admit it.

Im so glad I didnt go the Beemer route. I can imagine it being really hard knowing I paid more $$ for a car with less HP and goodies.

Thats great that TMDS got in there with some pics, and a well written post with it!!

that review is biased toward bmw

Interesting that they haven't even talked about the M45 yet!

Ev_eezy wrote:Interesting that they haven't even talked about the M45 yet!

Baby steps....

A review from BMW owners on our cars... The heck with them. I won't expect anything but distain. I am blessed enough to say I have owned both BMW and Infiniti. The 535i I had was a great car, when it wasn't in the shop getting a new transmission. Bought it brand new and during the 50K miles I kept it for I had FOUR transmissions.

I don't know about you folks, but here in the Philly area of PA, you can count the 5-series and 7-series on one hand that you come across. Low performance, over-the-top styling, and almost always a "holier-than-thou" sales and service department staff.

Boy, I sound like them now.... sorry.

well, one thing that many people missed, was that to get a 5 series that can beat an M45 you are gonna be paying a whole lot more the Press reviews didn't use "cheaper" Bimmers to keep things fair, but the simple fact is if you want the best from germany with a v-8 or put an M badge on it, you are gonna be out a boatload of cash. I do think it is childish of them to say that the car is sluggish with the v-6. a car with 280hp shouldn't be paired to the term sluggish. if I had to do my whole purchase over I would probably gottan an M45/35. but due to the fac tthat they are brand new on the market the G35 was in my budget. But hey as long as there are two brands on the market we will always be on one side or the other.I think Infiniti has made it clear to the auto community that they set out to beat the benchmark, which is the BMW lineup, and its no surprise that they succeded in that task. they didn't look at lexus, acura, mercedes, or anyone else. they set out to be the best, and they had to beat the best to do it. mision accomplished

Okay...Wait...

Did I read that right.

BMW makes a 525?!

A FULL SIZE sedan, as big as the M or Q, with a 2.5 liter engine?! And this is an ENTHUSIAST car?

That's like selling A cadillac STS with an ecotec!

German carmaker mentalities baffle me.

I have BMW 5 series (2004) and a 06' M35.

I can honestly say that the M has it all over the BMW.

The M handles as good if not better, has better acceleration, much better Nav system, better Audio system, and hopefully won't be in the shop for 34 days as the BMW has.

That said, the BMW has better fuel economy, better brakes, quieter interior, better ride.

well its not a 2.5L engine, they just use the same 3L I-6 and have different heads and other goodies to produce less HP than the 530. which makes no sense. they should simplify the line to one 6cylinder one V-8 and then the very nice V-10 powered M5.

MinisterofDOOM wrote:Okay...Wait...

Did I read that right.

BMW makes a 525?!

A FULL SIZE sedan, as big as the M or Q, with a 2.5 liter engine?! And this is an ENTHUSIAST car?

That's like selling A cadillac STS with an ecotec!

German carmaker mentalities baffle me.

Its a Euro thing. Their demands for fuel economy and such make small engines in big cars fairly common. Euros have the XJ6, 3.0L diesel Phaeton, and small-engined BMWs. Even Chrysler has the 2.7L 300.

The old 525 really wasnt too bad, thanks to changes in gearing and plentiful torque. You couldn't scream down the highway, but you could easily zip around town through traffic. Picture London.