BMW Archives

Possibly an electric version of the BMW 5-Series has been caught testing with camouflage stickers on the front and rear bumper. The test mule is seen with ‘Hybrid Test Vehicle’ taped to the side of the doors and on the rear bumper. There is also another badging taped in black on the c pillar of the car which is likely to be eDrive that is currently on the BMW 530e. The sedan might be getting a facelift and the front and rear where the most significant changes are covered as seen in the pictures. The front grille may become larger and the bumper is likely to be revised as a panel riveted to it makes us believe there could be design changes hiding behind it. The headlight may get the latest design features and the tail lights are also likely to see some changes in the internal elements. The test mule photographed could very likely be an M Sport model as the car shows blue brake calipers and a variant badging on the grille which has been taped. The spy pictures of the interiors are not available at the moment but it is being speculated that the car is expected to get the latest bells and whistles in terms of the instrument cluster and the iDrive infotainment system which could be employed on the entire 5-Series line-up. The current 530e iPerformance is powered by a 2.0-litre, twin-turbo, 4-cylinder engine which is coupled to an AC synchronous electric motor with charger and generator mode for energy recuperation. The combined output of the powertrain is 248 HP of power and 420 Nm of torque paired to an 8-speed Steptronic Sport Automatic transmission with steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters. It is being speculated that this powertrain will be updated and the name will be changed from 530e to the 545e, to reflect with the updated powertrain which could be from the 745e. BMW has launched the 530e xDrive sedan this summer to join its rear wheel drive sibling and it is highly unlikely to make any changes in the powertrain department, apart from just one change that might be a longer electric range as a result of the latest battery cell technology. Source