At the 100th annual general meeting of the
BMW Group, the company dropped the first official teaser of the upcoming G30
BMW 5 Series LCI (Life Cycle Impulse), with the facelifted sedan set to debut
in the next two weeks. This was revealed in a presentation by Oliver Zipse,
chairman of the board of management of BMW Group, who said, “in just under two
weeks, we will present the new BMW 5 Series. Both the Sedan and the Touring
will also be available as electrified versions. We are using our 48-volt mild
hybrid technology in nearly all conventional models – saving up to nine grams
of CO2 per kilometre.”
Of course, we won’t need to wait that long
to see the changes made to BMW’s rival to the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which has
already been given a refresh back in March. Towards the end of April, leaked
images of the updated 5er made its way online, giving us a clear look at what’s
new. On the exterior, the most obvious change is the adoption of a conjoined
kidney grille, a cue that is already present on the rest of the BMW line-up.
Unlike the latest G11/G12 7 Series, the carmaker opted against enlarging the
grille, and instead made it to appear more in line with the smaller 3 Series,
complete with chromed vertical slats.
Other changes up front include slimmer and
notched headlamps that feature a new, L-shaped LED daytime running light
design. The model in the leaked photos is dressed up in an M Sport kit, with
prominent intakes on the bumper. As for the rear, the LED taillights now come
with revised graphics and a darker tint to them, while the bumper appears to
remain largely similar to what you get with the pre-facelift model.
From this angle, we can also spot a “530e”
badge, confirming the availability of a plug-in hybrid variant, although it is
expected to retain the electrified 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder rather
than stepping up to an inline-six as seen in the 745Le (badged as the 740Le
here in Malaysia). Based on Zipse’s words, lesser, mild hybrid powertrain will
also be made available.
