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MIGHT BE easier, then, to consider the 535d. The second of
the 5er-Reihe line-up lent to Lucire for evaluation, the
diesel model doesn’t quite stir the soul the same way. The features
are all there: the gadgetry, the comfortable seats, the airbag,
the iDrive system—but you can’t help but feel something is missing.
The six-cylinder diesel is one of the smoothest units on the market,
but, like all sixes, the sound doesn’t compare to that of the bent
eight.
It’s as refined as the 550i, though with less power
(a “mere” 300 PS), you don’t
feel the same sense of urgency around the bends. There’s nothing
to suggest the chassis is any different, but subjectively, the cornering
feels less sporting. But this is the responsible variant, one that
isn’t meant to be flung around the winding roads of Makara like
a Golf GTI. It’s meant to be a mode
of conveyance around town as an executive saloon that blends refinement,
handling, looks and economy in a single package. If you have to
head on to the motorway, it continues to reward you.
On that mission, it succeeds. The places where the 550i
fell down, the 535d picks up. You are knocking 90 g/km off the carbon
dioxide emissions, getting the figure down to 163 g/km, and we averaged
a commendable 29·4 mpg (9·6 l/100 km) on our test—10 miles per gallon
more than the 550i.
Oddly, externally, it was ‘angrier’ than the 550i. That
was the judgement of Tanya Sooksombatisatian, Lucire’s head
designer, as she shot the car in Makara: with the M-pack, the deeper
spoiler gave the front of the 535d more purpose. We called it shark-like.
Light reflected off the grey bonnet and front wings in ways we had
to capture. Someone had lavished a lot of attention to how the metal
curved to get those effects, giving you another level of appreciation
for the car’s styling.
This was a confusing message. If you opt for a 535d,
your brain will have sided with rationality over emotion. Everything
about this car makes sense: despite its size, it has a very respectable
mpg figure. You are being kinder to the trees.
Getting the M-pack out seems to go against the nicer
approach of the car.
Not that we dislike the looks: on the contrary. Individuality
we can understand—in fact, a fashion magazine promotes it—but being
an angry shark flies in the face of the ‘Gently does it’ engineering
that the 535d possesses. It might have 300 PS
but you don’t ever feel it rushing to the fore when you accelerate
in normal conditions.
Perhaps the optional M-pack is for those who want to
hide their niceness. What if you’re a lawyer who can’t be seen as
nice, even though you are deep down?
Again, BMW has tapped in
to how many car buyers think today.
We like new cars, just as we like new clothes. But we
are so much more conscious about their effects on the environment.
So, if we have to buy, then let it be something that expresses
our individuality—but let it also be something that makes some long-term
sense. Financially, getting close to 30 mpg isn’t a bad thing, either.
The 550i might be the choice for those who wear their
hearts on their sleeves, but the 535d is the thinking person’s executive
saloon. However, you have it, more rationality is permitted, which
makes the 535d the best in the business. •
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It’s meant to be a mode of conveyance around
town as an executive saloon that blends refinement, handling, looks
and economy in a single package. If you have to head on to the motorway,
it continues to reward you
Jack Yan is publisher of Lucire.
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The shark has pretty teeth The M-pack on the BMW 535d gives it
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