BMW 5 Series review

First thing to note is that the front seats and driving position in the new 5 Series are as spot on as ever, while in the back there’s plenty of room for even tall folk. Unsurprising, given this is the biggest 5er to date.

Mind you, the front seat adjustment controls in the 520i are curious: while the height, tilt and lumbar adjustment are electrically controlled by buttons on the side of the seat bases, the slider remains a manual lever under the seat. For a fifty grand car, that feels a little cheap.

The biggest story – quite literally – in the new 5 Series though is the curved dual display, consisting of a 12.3-inch digital instrument display behind the steering wheel and a 14.9-inch infotainment display sitting loud and proud front and centre. It certainly looks the part and it's nicely angled towards the driver. Plus the OS is as good as they come and the touchscreen is superbly responsive.

Sadly though, BMW has (along with just about every other manufacturer on the planet) decided to integrate the climate controls into the infotainment display, with the previous generation’s knobs and buttons unit now gone.

The good news is the settings are permanently displayed along the bottom of the screen, but they're still a little fiddly to operate and you'll need to bring up a menu to perform most basic functions. The iDrive rotary controller remains though. Hooray!

And then there are the air vents: in an attempt to better disguise them, BMW has decided on individual touch controls to adjust how open/closed they are. To say it feels over-engineered is an understatement, particularly when the manual controls a) still exist, and b) are easier to use. Strange.

The boot meanwhile is 520 litres whether you go for the mild hybrid or plug-in hybrid, which is up on the Jaguar XF, but slightly less than the Audi A6 and Mercedes E-Class. Fully electric i5 models get 490 litres.

Oh and one final thing: if you’re looking to fold the rear seats down, the seat release buttons are in the boot just below the rear window. You’re welcome.