The 520d has a 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo diesel engine that produces 185 hp (135 kW) and 280 pound-feet (380 Nm) of torque.  It used 4.9 l/100 km (48 mpg)  in the combined EU test cycle (although BMW Australia reported its fuel usage as 5.2 l/100 km)  and CO2 emissions are just 137 g/km.  [The EU test cycle has three components: city or urban driving (the first 800 seconds of the test), highway or extra urban driving (the next 400 seconds), and combined (the complete cycle).]

The 520d can go from zero to 100 km (0-62 mph) in 8.1 seconds.  For $83,300, Australians get an eight-speed automatic transmission, 17″ alloy wheels, Head Up Display (HUD), Park Distance Control, among other options.  BMW EfficientDynamics technologies for the 520d include low rolling-resistance tires, brake energy regeneration, and air vent control.  The 520d is available in Australia effective immediately.

The 535d, a new addition to BMW’s diesel offerings, comes with a 3.0-liter 300 hp (220 kW) twin-turbo six-cylinder engine that produces 442 pound-feet (600 Nm) of torque.  The 535d, which will become available in November, will cost $134,400 and (in addition to the equipment listed for the 520d) includes metallic paint, 18″ alloy wheels, an eight-speed sports automatic transmission, rear view camera, Comfort Access, and a 12-speaker HiFi system.  It used 6.1 l/100 km (38.5 mpg) in the EU test cycle and sprints from zero to 100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 5.7 seconds.

BMW of North America will offer a 5er Series diesel by mid-2011.  Prices quoted are in Australian dollars.

The basic 5er Series configuration hasn’t changed since 1972: front engine, rear-wheel drive, 50-50 weight balance, 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.

The 5er Series is the epitome of the big German sedan and 50% of BMW’s profits come from this model.

So the introduction of a new 5er Reihe (5er Series) is critical for the company.  At the company’s 2010 annual meeting a few days ago, Norbert Reithofer, BMW’s Vorstandvorsitzender (CEO), announced that BMW has “received considerably more orders than planned” for the 5er Series, adding that the 5er Series “will be a key driver of sales, image and profit for the BMW Group.”

The sixth generation 5er Series loses the unusual styling of its polarizing predecessor and pays homage in many respects to the 5er Series models that preceded it.

While it would be overly simplistic to say that BMW has returned to the one sausage/three lengths principle, the new 5er looks more like a part of the BMW family BMW (and quite similar to the new 7er Series) than its predecessor ever did.

In Europe, buyers get a choice of four petrol and three diesel models.  The U.S. market currently gets two petrol models, the 535i and the 550i but more models, including a diesel, are on the way.

To get to know the new 5er better, I spent a week with the 530d.  I started in Munich, drove 366 kilometers to Prague, and took several drives in the Czech countryside,  including a 360-kilometer roundtrip from Prague to Třebíč (Trebitsch) , and the return trip back to Munich.

The car 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.  The wood trim looks more like wood (even though BMW doesn’t use imitation wood) and the Comfort Seats are even more comfortable than before.  Click here to continue to page 2.

It’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, with an estimated 4.1 million visitors per year.

One of the defining characteristics of the city is the Vltava, the longest river in the Czech Republic.  Known in English and German as the Moldau, it is crossed by 18 bridges and over 31 km of the river run through Prague. Its spirit was captured in the best known of the six symphonic poems by Bedřich Smetana that comprise Má vlast (My Fatherland).

Leaving Munich, the 366 km drive to Prague in the new BMW 530d (internal designation F10) took a little over four hours.

We started in Garching on the Bundesstraße 11 and headed over to the Autobahn A9, which we took for 37 km.  The A9, known as the A3 until a new numbering plan was implemented in 1974, is one of the oldest Autobahnen in Germany, with sections of it dating back to 1936.  After German reunification, the A9 was expanded from two to a minimum of three lanes in each direction plus an emergency lane.  Traffic was light on the A9 and we were able to cruise at speeds ranging from 160 km/h to 220 km/h.

Near Holledau, we switched to the Autobahn A93, which took us past Regensburg as we headed in the direction of Nürnberg and the Czech border.  The A93 is an older two-lane Autobahn and as a result a bit slower at times.

After 128 km on the A93 after we passed Nürnberg to the west, we switched to the A6 and twenty or so minutes later (ca. two hours into the drive) we crossed the border into the Czech Republic.  The stretch of Autobahn between Nürnberg and the Czech border is known as Via Carolina.  The A6, much like the A8 to the south, is relatively old and ill-suited for the amount of traffic it gets.

Once in the Czech Republic, after stopping to purchase a Vignette (toll sticker), we continued on the D5 (Dálnice 5) motorway for 153 km.  The D5 runs from the German border past Pilsen on to Prague.  After leaving the D5, we continued on a smaller motorway for 7.5 km and that left 6 km in Prague to make our way to the Four Seasons Hotel in the city center.

Despite some congestion, we averaged 180 km/h on the German Autobahnen and 140 km/h on the Dálnice 5.  For the 366 km trip, we used 8.9 l/100 km (26.4 mpg).  This figure is in stark contrast to the fuel economy figures we saw for the BMW 730d 18 months ago, with the larger 7er using only 7.4 l/100 km (32 mpg). It’s also not as good as the 8.0 l/100 km (29.4 mpg) average fuel economy figure that BMW reports for the 530d, although that figure is based on significantly lower speeds than we averaged on German Autobahnen. (The 730d’s fuel usage is rated at 9.5 l/100 km.)

One explanation for the poorer showing was the amount of stop-and-go traffic encountered on the drive from Munich to Prague, which was far more than on the previous trip from Munich to Portorož.

We’ll have a complete review of the BMW 530d in an upcoming issue so stay tuned.

When ordering their vehicles, most agencies prefer to specify diesel engines.  This is in part due to the fuel efficiency of such cars as these agencies have to keep their operating costs down, but also the fact that diesel-powered vehicles tend to last longer as well. Many of these cars, especially police cars, have been driven over 250,000 kilometres.

In Bavaria in particular, many local governments and agencies purchase BMWs and Audis for their fleets. The choice of car is often greatly influenced by the presence of a car maker’s factory and/or headquarters in a particular region.

In May 2006, the handover of 50 320d wagons was done with great fanfare in downtown Munich. The cars were accepted by Dr. Günther Beckstein, Interior Minister of Bavaria, for the Bayerische Polizei (Bavarian Police).

Recently, the regional fire inspector of Ebersberg (Kreisbrandrat Landkreis Ebersberg) came to observe my fire brigade’s training exercise (a fire in an industrial building where several types of toxic and dangerous substances had been stored) and arrived in his brand new BMW 530d E61 Touring.

The 530d Touring comes with a 3.0-liter 6-cylinder diesel engine that produces 235 hp and 368 pound-feet (500 nm) of torque.  It can go from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.9 seconds.  With a 70-liter fuel tank and excellent fuel economy (6.6 l/100 km or 35 mpg), the 530d can go ca. 1,050 km (650 miles) on one tank of fuel.

The BOS market is important to BMW.  Last year the company unveiled the X6 xDrive50i “Emergency Physician” Showcar at the RETTmobil emergency vehicle show. Although not a diesel (it’s powered by BMW’s 407-hp twin-turbo V-8 engine), it does foreshadow things to come.

The Diesel Driver’s European Editor, Christian Stampfer (pictured), is a dedicated volunteer fireman and is serving since 2007 as 2. Kommandant der freiwilligen Feuerwehr Gelting (2nd commander of the volunteer Gelting fire brigade).