2004 BMW 545i vs. 2005 Cadillac STS

BMW 545i
Announcing that BMW will no longer produce the same old sedans, the Bavarian automaker's design team applied to the new 5 Series the controversial architecture begun on the 7 Series flagship. Compared with the previous 5 Series, the new car offers a taller profile, with a raised roof and bustle-like trunk. It's a remarkable break from the past, considering how successful the previous cars were. Noted one editor, "Save for the prominent twin-kidney grille treatment, the new 5 Series looks almost Japonic." Commented another, "In profile, the 5 has substance, but almost too much; it looks thick and chunky." A third added, "those Kia Rio-like taillamps appear out of place on a $60,000 car."

Inside the new 5 Series, the extra length and height of the cabin are put to good use. "I could sit 'behind myself' with room to spare," said one editor. And the driving environment came in for praise. "This is a functional place," he continued, "the controls are first-rate and everything snaps and clicks with a precision feel." Overall, the interior-design philosophy works, save for one. Even in a revised, easier-to-use version, iDrive still confounded us. Whereas everyone agreed that the intent of cleaning up the cabin and reducing the number of control buttons was a noble one, the execution requires too many keystrokes to perform simple tasks, like changing a radio station. By forcing the driver to sift through layers of choices, it diverts his attention from what he should be concentrating on--driving a great-handling car. One writer concluded, "maybe the answer is less technogarbage people never asked for in the first place."

One thing enthusiasts couldn't ask for is a more capable, better-balanced chassis. "When really chopping up a road, the 545i comes into its own," said one staffer. The weight-saving aluminum front structure helps the 5 Series achieve a near-perfect 50/50 front/rear weight balance. With run-flat tires installed as standard equipment, stiff sidewalls make for a firm, jouncy ride on less-than-perfect roads. Our test car was also equipped with a sport package that substitutes stiffer springs and shocks and lowers ride height 0.6 inch. Antisquat and antidive geometry in the suspension keeps the 5 from pitching when driven hard, and the active roll stabilization included with the sport package virtually eliminates all body roll in 80 percent of driving situations. As a result, the car feels planted and can cover big ground in a hurry.

Even though it doesn't look it, the new 5 Series is larger than previous one. BMW added an inch or two to its length, width, and height, and, like the STS, this mostly goes to increasing rear-seat room and luggage space (trunk will accommodate four golf bags).

One aspect of the 5's underpinnings netted its share of controversy, however: active steering. Its variable-ratio technology can change the steering from a bog-slow 20:1 to a hyper-fast 10:1. In one camp were staffers who appreciated having some extra speed at the corners of steering lock. Others bemoaned the loss of linearity. This ranged from worrying about clipping abutments in parking garages to uncertainty how the car might react in a high-speed corner. An editor explained, "The steering varies with a strange algorithm, and I never seem to be able to second-guess how much lock to dial in. The effect is particularly bad when braking from speed into a tight corner--after feeling fairly slow, the steering suddenly cuts hard, and you have to dial out lock to get back on line with your intended apex."