German Car Zone

Edmunds pretend this to be an exclusive animation of the next 5er coming in 2009 codely named as the "F10" project. wonder how reliable is this information. Based on this demo, no dramatic change is done overall. As EniLab once mentioned, wider and lower with a coupe like roof. Am still worried about those headlights.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...cleId=116690#6

wow cool..i like that PS..thats hot..
i hope it will turn out nicely.. allthough i like the current 5er..

PS
Only with M package though..otherwise its abit wierd..imho

Very cool! Is this official artwork? They are saying the car won't grow much, but the wheelbase will be longer (meaning the wheels will be even more to the ends, less overhang) and the car will be lighter. Overall the shapes will stay the same but sportier and more smoothed out. Interior looks stunning too, little X5ish....







These illustrations of the 2009 BMW 5 Series represent the clearest look yet at the future design direction of this class-leading luxury sedan. They're based on information from sources in Europe who claim this BMW will move away from the polarizing design of the current model.

Already under development with the internal codename "F10," the next-generation BMW 5 Series will soften the harder lines of the current E60 with more conventional-looking headlights and a cleaner front-end design. New European pedestrian safety standards are expected to drastically alter the design of many European cars for the worse, but BMW will not only maintain its classic twin-kidney grille design, it will reduce the length of the front overhang.

As is typical of most recent BMW redesigns, this 5 Series will add some space between the wheels by extending the wheelbase nearly 3 inches and widening the track. The overall length will grow by less than half an inch, while its height will be reduced slightly and its width increased by a fraction. A set of 17-inch wheels will be the smallest available with 18- and 19-inch wheels optional.

Under the hood, this 5 Series is expected to use variations of existing engines in BMW's lineup. Base power will likely come from a 2.5-liter straight-6 while top-range models will use the current 4.8-liter V8. A wild card could be thrown into the mix if BMW attempts to combine its latest turbo technology with a V8 of slightly smaller displacement. Also in the works is a more powerful version of the M5's 5.0-liter V10.

That's just Stehrenberger's re-worked Huckfelft's impression:



Stehrenberger's impressions are usually published in automotive magazines - just like Huckfeldt's.

We are still quite a few months away of knowing the final design.

The final design of F10 is not chosen yet. But the instructions from marketing department are known: slightly bigger, more room, more coupeish, more aggressive, more commanding. So expect longer wheelbase, higher shoulder line, shallower greenhouse, shorter rear end, aggressive front & back. Styling will be an evoulution of E60's styling: evolved & even more pronounced flame surfacing, refined "Bangle-butt", refined headlights etc.

I expect all new generations of BMW vehicles to come with new interpretation of twin kidney grille: even more 3D, even more pronounced.

Sculptures in motion is exactly what BMW is aiming for and has been since the onset of this flame generation model proliferation. Great news as always Eni.

Assertions like this really annoy me....

.... as if to say, the only reason they're 'toning down' the exterior is because it's taken 'criticism' - journos seem to have a field day badtalking BMW's styling for no other reason, it seems, than it's the accepted thing to do - not because it actually reflects consumer demand, or the car's sales, or reality, or whatever.

But I do like that impression.

If it wasn't a consumer's demand to tone down the design then BMW wouldn't had made changes in their latest models like X5 and E92.
All car makers make surveys about future designs (even if it's behind close doors with selected groups of people) and the results are evaluated and dictate the design directions. Clearly the results from BMW's surveys must show that consumers want less controversial designs.

Not necesarly.
E46 and e53 sold well, so they were sort of spared.
e38 and e39, without USA sales, would be considered flops. So they paid the price.

Mind that final design is decided sometimes in the middle of development period - which usually takes 5 - 6 years. So, that's about 2.5 - 3 years before car hits the markets.

So E65 7er final design was decided sometimes in late 1998 / early 1999.
E85 Z4 in late 1999 / early 2000.
E60 5er in mid 2000 / late 2000.
E83 X3 early 2001 / mid 2001.
E63 6er early 2001 / mid 2001.
E87 1er late 2001 / early 2002.
E90 3er Summer 2002.
E92 3er September 2003.
E70 X5 late 2003 / early 2004.

E65 was shown at IAA 2001, and went on sale in November 2001. So E85, E60, E83, E63/4 & possibly E87 designs were picked before BMW's management saw general public's reaction to E65. Nobody at BMW did not expect such harsh reactions - especially the world went much more conservative after 9/11.

So BoD definitelly became much more careful by picking the final designs. Risking for the sake of it would be just stupid - and BMW AG owners would not be happy with such irrational decisions. So BMW AG had to adapt / react to the new times & harsh criticism.

So all designs picked after E65's launch (E90, E92, E70) perhaps came out much more refined (but mind that they were not planned to be radical anyway) than initially planned. We will never know how the initial proposals looked like. We can just speculate how much they were toned down.

The refinement of design perhaps started a bit earlier than planned. But mind that evolution after revolution was planned from the begining (Bangle had talked about it already at E65's launch).

So - yes - I told you many times: from now on we will see much more eye-pleasing & refined designs from BMW - yet the modern & dynamic styling is staying.

The video says "interior will be largely unchanged" ??
I dont' think that is possible, it is hard to believe a brand new model not having new everything... plus, isn't 2009 a bit too early? the 5 haven't even been facelifted..