Category: Executive 
Price Range: £27,430 to £65,330
Handling, refinement, comfort, quality.
Too much of the clever kit is confined to the options list.
Brilliant all-round package, impressively updated.
The 5-Series has a top-rated alarm and immobiliser fitted as standard, and comes with an impressive array of passive safety features, but it falls one short of top marks for occupant protection in the Euro NCAP crash tests. It gets four out of five for child protection and a slightly worrying one for pedestrian protection.
Superb roadholding, agile handling and powerful brakes make it easier to avoid an accident in the first place, helped by the highly sophisticated DSC+ stability control system. Lane Departure Warning System is also standard on the 550i and 535d and an option on everything else: if you start to change lanes without indicating, a gentle vibration through the steering wheel will prompt you into action. An option on cars fitted with sat nav and automatic gearbox (but not the 520d), Active cruise control with Stop & Go can slow you down (to zero if need be) and speed you up in order to keep you at a steady distance from the car in front.
Head-Up Display, another option, means you can keep your eyes on the road ahead and look at crucial information (such as speed and directions) at the same time. You can also get High-Beam Assistant, which spots an oncoming vehicle and dips your headlights for you, and then returns you to main beam when it's passed, while Night Vision uses a thermal imaging camera to detect pedestrians or animals ahead and display their image on the iDrive screen, sometimes crucial seconds before you'd spot them with the naked eye.
