The Diesel Driver » Austria

2011 BMW 535d Sedan Review and Road Test

Jonathan Spira — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 18:16:13 +0000

When a model is responsible for 50% of your company’s profit – and you are replacing it with a brand new vehicle – you have to get it right. BMW has been making the 5 Series sedan since 1972 when the line replaced the New Six (the 2500/2800/Bavaria models).

The sixth generation 2011 5 Series is that replacement and, one year after its launch, it’s clear that BMW not only got it right but excelled in all the right places.

The basic 5 Series configuration hasn’t changed a lot since 1972: namely, front engine, rear-wheel drive, 50-50 weight balance, a good mixture of ride comfort and handling, and room for four adults with luggage. Since its launch, more than 5.5 million of the 5er Series have been sold.

Today, BMW is having trouble keeping up with the demand for the 5er, which lost the unusual styling of its polarizing predecessor and pays homage to the 5er Series models that preceded it. As a result, the new 5er looks more like a part of the BMW family (and quite similar to the new 7er Series) than its predecessor ever did.

Buyers in the U.S. currently have a choice of three gasoline-powered 5 Series models: the 528i, the 535i, and the 550i. In Europe, customers get a choice of six petrol and five diesel models. A diesel model is planned for the U.S. but its arrival date is uncertain.

Over the past year, we’ve had the opportunity to drive several 5ers including (in order of appearance) the 530d, the 535i GT, the 550i, the 535d Touring (wagon) , and, most recently, the 535d Sedan. When a diesel 5er finally arrives on these shores, it will have been worth waiting for.

The BMW 535d is aggressively elegant. To quote BMW chief designer Adrian von Hooydonk, “The 5-series is designed to express autobahn speed even when standing still.” The multiple contours on the sculpted hood and sides add a layer of depth not present in earlier models. People who walked over to look at the car puzzled over the hood, trying to discern if it were indeed concave or convex (it’s both).

The interior mirrors the layout of the new 7er, with richer materials and softer, supple leather. After spending several days in the front seats, I am more convinced than ever that BMW’s Comfort Seats are the best in the industry. In the rear, passengers benefit from a few extra inches thanks to a three-inch (7.6 cm) increase in the wheelbase.

With the new 5er, BMW has returned to a driver-oriented cockpit (something first abandoned in the previous generation 5er). As a result, cabin ergonomics are just perfect. Everything – think switches, knobs, levers, buttons – is placed exactly where the driver needs it to be – a significant advantage when driving at speeds in excess of 160 km/h (100 mph) on an Autobahn. While there are some differences, the dash looks as if it came directly from the 7er.

Indeed, the 5er Series has the 7er’s high-resolution 10.2” Central Information Display, which doesn’t wash out in direct sunlight. The fourth-generation iDrive system, which keeps getting better, not only has an easy-to-use and intuitive menu structure and an ergonomic controller knob, but new features and functionality as well.

The newest functionality adds one-shot destination voice entry for navi (you can say the entire address without pausing – and the system actually understands it), voice control for iPod, iPod Out, and Bluetooth Mobile Office.

Apple’s iPod Out system, which BMW is the first automaker to support, allows drivers to see music information (including categorization and album art) exactly as the information would appear on an iPod. This includes support for Apple’s Genius recommendation system, as well as custom playlists.

Bluetooth Mobile Office provides integration with supported smartphones, allowing calendar and tasks to be displayed. The car will read e-mails, text messages, calendar entries, and notes out loud using built-in text-to-speech technology. I have to admit that I had forgotten about this feature until the 535d displayed a new message icon on the CID and it turned out to be new text and e-mail messages on my BlackBerry Torch.

Click here to continue to Page 2 -Driving the BMW 535d

The Road to Bratislava – Driving the BMW 535d Sedan

Christian Stampfer — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 21:18:51 +0000

Bratislava, known in many regions by its German name, Preßburg, is the capital of Slovakia. It was the destination for a long distance road trip with the all new BMW 535d sedan. The drive from Munich to Bratislava would be more than 500 km (310 miles) , so TDD editor Jonathan Spira and I decided to take the drive together.

Our dark graphite metallic (sophistograu) 535d sedan, which we picked up a few days prior to our drive, was fully loaded with virtually all of the latest innovations the new 5er Series has to offer. This includes safety features such as the Lane Departure Warning and Active Blind Spot Detection, and the Speed Limit Info, which show up directly on the Head-Up Display. We were also looking forward to seeing the effects of the Dynamic Damper Control and exercising the 8-speed sport automatic gearbox, which, because of its enormous torque, is standard on the 535d.

The straight six-cylinder diesel engine of the 535d is engineered with BMWs latest TwinPower Turbo technology including direct fuel injection and twin-scroll turbo technology. This combination provides the driver with 300 hp (220 kW) and a powerful 425 pound-feet of torque. This brings the 535d from 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 5.7 seconds, making it faster than the 335d, which takes 6.0 seconds to cover the same distance. To say it accelerates is an understatement. We found, to quote a BMW advert in the U.S. from the 1960s, it “goes like schnell.”

On a sunny Sunday morning, after a wonderful brunch at the Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski Hotel in Munich, we started our journey to Bratislava. While I stored our baggage in the large trunk (520 liter volume) of the 535d sedan, Jonathan programmed the Navi Professional with our destination and we started via the famous Maximiliansstraße towards the Autobahn A8, in the direction of Salzburg. This was to be the slowest portion of our trip. Thanks to the extra tight security during the Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz 2011 (Munich Security Conference), it was quite a challenge for us to leave the inner city due to multiple street closures. As a result, we had to take the Rosenheimer Straße and we passed by the Deutsches Museum on our way to the Autobahn A8, which we reached a few minutes later.

We then continued on the A8 in the direction of Salzburg for the next 130 km (81 miles) and enjoyed a beautiful mountain panorama of the Bavarian and Austrian Alps before we reached the Austrian border. It was not, however, a fast trip. Perhaps thanks to the unusually sunny and warm weather conditions (for February), there was heavy Sunday afternoon traffic and, and the Autobahn had a maximum speed limit of 120 km/h (74 mp/h) until Irschenberg. We also passed through several construction areas on a two lane stretch of the A8, where our speed was limited to 80 km/h (50 mp/h).

Click here to continue to Page 2 – Crossing the border with the BMW 535d

The Diesel Driver 2011 BMW 335d Calendar Released

David Goldes — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 00:46:05 +0000

The Diesel Driver’s 2011 BMW 335d calendar is now available online for immediate delivery.

This calendar captures the elegance and raw power of the BMW 335d sedan.

Jonathan Spira picked up this particular 335d in Munich at the BMW Welt and drove it in Austria, Germany, and the United States.

The 2011 calendar includes 13 photographs of the 335d taken in places ranging from Lime Rock Park in the U.S. to the BMW Welt in Munich to Graz, Austria.

Save 10% if you order your copy today.

BMW X3 Ends Production in Graz, Austria

Paul Riegler — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 20:51:57 +0000

Two diesels are the last two X3s off the production line

The last two current generation BMW X3 SAVs, an X3 xDrive 20d and an X3 xDrive35d, rolled off the assembly line yesterday at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria. Magna Steyr was BMW’s production partner for the X3 since its launch in 2004

Starting today, the next generation X3 is being produced in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

The Vermilion red BMW X3 xDrive35d, which was the very last X3 of its kind, will be used as an executive car at Magna Steyr, while the X3 xDrive20d was built to full emergency vehicle specifications and will be donated to a non-profit organization.

Since the start of production, 614,824 X3s were produced, including those produced in Russia, Egypt, and Thailand as part of a CKD (Completely Knocked Down) assembly program. 605,498 X3s were produced in Graz.

The Road to Graz

Jonathan Spira — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 18:25:43 +0000

Graz, a city of 250,000 inhabitants and six universities, straddles the Mur River in southeastern Austria. The inner city district is one of the best preserved city centers in Europe.

A World Cultural Heritage Site, Graz is Austria’s second largest city and is the capital and largest city in the province of Steiermark (Styria), a heavily forested region. Graz was the Cultural Capital of Europe in 2003.

Leaving Roßfeld, the drive to Graz takes ca. 3 hours and is reached via a mix of Autobahnen, Bundesstraßen, and Landstraßen. Only 150 km of the trip are via an Autobahn.

The route takes the 335d from the B999 (Roßfeldstraße) through Gmerk, where we cross the Austrian border and take the Dürrnberg Landesstraße through Hallein and continuing along the Salzachtal-Bundesstraße (B159) and then the Europastraße until reaching the Tauern-Autobahn (A10), which we take in the direction of Graz and Villach.

In the course of a 47-kilometer stretch on the Tauern-Autobahn, we go through five tunnels (Ofenauer Tunnel, Hiefler Tunnel, Brentenberg Tunnel, Zetzenberg Tunnel, and the Helbersberg Tunnel).

We continue on the E651 (which is first the B99 and then the B320) through Liezen, for ca. 75 km and join the Pyhrn-Autobahn (A9), which we take for the remaining 105 km to Graz. The A9 takes us through the Gleinalmtunnel, with a toll of 7.50 EUR.

Exiting the A9, we reach the city center and the Grand Hotel Wiesler in just a few minutes.

Join us here for the drive.

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Driving the Roßfeldstraße

Jonathan Spira — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:47:15 +0000

A short drive from Berchtesgaden is the 16-kilometer Roßfeldstraße, also referred to as the Roßfeldhöhenringstraße, the highest through street in Germany, reaching an altitude of 1560 m. It gently runs through some of the most beautiful landscape in Austria and Germany (a state treaty between the two countries had to be negotiated in the 1950s as the road crests in Austria). At every turn one finds breathtaking views.

The 4.60 € toll (for the car and one person, 6.50 € for two people plus children, going as high as 11.50 € for a car with five adults) is well worth the price. A souvenir sticker is .50 € but a small brochure is handed out to all visitors.

To the north, one sees Austria, namely Hallein and Salzburg and, to the east, the Salzach valley and the mountains of the Salzkammergut. In the southeast one sees the Dachstein mountains, which reach 2995 meters above sea level.

On the German side one sees the Hohen Göll, Kehlstein to the southwest and north of that the Berchtesgadener Alps.

In winter, ski lifts are everywhere as are skiers. But many come just for the view and the many opportunities to sample good Bavarian Hausmannkost (plain fare).

Join us as we drive the Roßfeldstraße in the 335d.

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338 Kilometers from Lindau to Berchtesgaden

Jonathan Spira — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 21:26:36 +0000

The Diesel Driver’s BMW 335d had its maiden voyage yesterday from Munich (München) to Lindau, a trip of ca. 200 kilometers. After a short visit, it was off to Berchtesgaden, in the Bavarian Alps.

Lindau is a Bavarian town on a 0.68-square-kilometer island in the eastern part of the Bodensee (Lake Constance). The route from Lindau to Berchtesgaden takes one through the Allgäu (a region in southwestern Bavaria and also part of Baden-Württemberg). The Bodensee is common to Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. On its shores lie the German states of Bavaria (Bayern) and Baden-Württemberg, the Austrian state of Vorarlberg, and the Swiss cantons of Thurgau and St. Gallen.

The drive from Lindau to Berchtesgaden takes one on the A96 Autobahn towards Memmingen and then Munich for ca. 170 kilometers, 8 kilometers through Munich proper, and then 115 kilometers on the Autobahn A8. The fun part comes at the end, driving up the windy Bundesstraße 319 as the InterContinental Resort (our destination) is 1000 meters up in the mountains.

The BMW 335d averaged 7.5 l/100 km (31.4 mpg) on the trip and now has travelled over 500 kilometers.

Join us on the drive from Lindau to Berchtesgaden.

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