It's the little things, isn't it? writes Brian Byrne.
That trip to Kerry in the new BMW 5 Series involved a good lot of motorway, and a fair amount of secondary road driving — including a grass in the middle of the boreen diversion when I took a left turn too soon. The main motoring revelation was that BMW may have brought us closer to semi-autonomous driving than I'd believed.
The new car is lighter, longer, wider and higher, and is unmistakably an evolution of the previous generation 5 Series. You'll easily know it's the latest one by the vents on the front wings.
The review car was the 520d xDrive with M Sport trim. Extras included a Technology package that incorporated a hi-tech Display Key, a Head-Up display, and wireless charging of said key's battery which otherwise will run down fairly quickly. It, by the way, allows you park the car remotely, among other things. The other main option was Driving Assistant Plus, which links the active cruise control and the lane-keeping systems to enable semi-autonomous driving even in stop-go traffic.
With the system on, the car automatically followed the line of the motorway lane, also keeping distances between me and traffic ahead. I consciously allowed my hands to just rest on the wheel, following its movements instead of making them. It works. Most of the time. It can get confused by the road markings as you come by an off-ramp, for instance, so you do need to remain aware, and keep hands on the wheel.
You indicate to change lanes, or it will fight you as you cross the line. Once in the new lane, the autonomous system won't kick back in until you have been travelling straight for a few seconds.
I did learn to trust it, and I think I didn't seem to be as tired as usual at the end of each day's long drive, at least in part due to the Drive Assist system.
And the normal driving? It was never going to be less than excellent. It was enjoyable, satisfying, and relatively economical for such a big car. The official economy figure is 4.7L/100km, my actual was 7.0L/100km over the week.
Some small things niggled. In a car at this price, not having a standard rear-view camera sucks. And head-up displays on a windscreen don't work well with polarised sunglasses unless you tilt your head sideways. But I guess that's not the car's fault.
Loved it, really.
ENGINES: 2.0 petrols, 2.0 and 3.0 diesels; power 188hp-340hp.
EQUIPMENT: Two grades, SE and M Sport. Myriad options and packs.
PRICES: From €51,950 (Review car with extras €70,000+).
STAR RATING: 4.5/5
