Rental Review: The 2021 BMW 530 xDrive, Interference at No Cost to You

2022-06-03 23:30:39 By : Ms. Lynn Lin

As a fan of the midsize luxury sedan class, it’s sad to see how many manufacturers have given up on the segment. The German trio still has their stalwarts, but Japan gave up in 2020 (RIP Lexus GS), the only American still in the ring is the Cadillac CT5, and its outlier status is accompanied by newcomer Genesis with the G80.

It’s a dying class, which is why your author was especially pleased to spend the Memorial Day weekend with a longstanding headliner of the German luxury sedan genre: A 2021 BMW 5-Series.

The G30 5-Series has been with us since the 2017 model year and experienced its first refresh for 2021. With its larger headlamps and grille, the 5-Series is migrating toward BMW’s new take on its traditional kidney grille, though is spared a ridiculous visage like on the new 4-Series. It’s not offensive to look at but does nothing to look particularly interesting. But plain is okay for an executive sedan. The rental was especially boring in Black Sapphire Metallic, which you might call dark gray.

Said paint is a $550 option on a mostly entry-level 530i xDrive. The 530i forms the base of the range at $54,200, whereas the all-wheel-drive version (this tester) asks for $56,500. The 530e models are plug-in hybrids that add 40 more horsepower to the base 2.0-liter’s 248. A rear-drive 530e asks $55,550, while xDrive is $57,850. The only way to get six cylinders is with the 540i, where the twin-turbo 3.0 inline-six (335 HP) starts at $59,950 and is $62,250 as xDrive.

That $56,500 base price is a bit misleading because lots of things cost extra on the 5-Series. Heated seats are a prime example, which are offered within the $600 Convenience Package that includes a powered tailgate. Both of these features should be standard in this class. With paint, seats, and destination the car you see here retails at $57,550. For that ask, the buyer receives a German-made car with consistent panel gaps, if not remarkably tight. Trim alignment around the exterior is excellent, though there is cost-cutting visible with how many chrome trim pieces are used, especially around the rear side windows.

With regard to the paint quality, plenty of orange peel is observed around all doors, especially on the area below the windows. The orange peel would have been less noticeable in a lighter color but showed through in the dark graphite finish.

A Mazda 3, for example, has a much better paint finish than the 5-Series. Grabbing the door handle one notices it’s made of a cheap-feeling plastic that is not nicely finished. Exterior door handle action is a bit rough, with accompanying plastic sounds. When the door handle is extended fully outward, unfinished materials are visible on the inside. All doors close with a reassuring thud. But when it comes time to exit the 530i, using the interior door handle nets plastic click-clack noises. It sounds rather cheap.

Like most modern cars on dealer lots, the BMW’s interior is a cave of black. The only materials that aren’t black include the “wood” trim and the “metal” across the dash and doors. Neither are real and unfortunately neither are convincing in their efforts. The wood in particular looks artificial because the grain is too consistent, and it’s covered in a high gloss finish. Other wood materials are available, but cost extra or are buried in packages. The metal look trim across the doors has a sharp edge underneath where it’s not finished properly.

Textures vary across the cabin, from the firm rubber of the dash to the black glossy plastic of the vent and center stack surrounds. Nothing feels particularly nice, but the glossy black trim deserves a special mention: It gets a greasy look after being touched and collects fingerprints and dust like nobody’s business (see photo). Everything feels solidly put together, apart from the protruding center screen which flexes and creaks if touched. The front of the (touch) screen gets quite hot, and BMW installs special vents to direct air to the back of it at all times.

Parts of the interior less often touched have an especially cheap feel. Notables are the glovebox lid and the overhead console plastic that contains lighting and sunroof buttons. Surfaces like the seats and door panels are finished in BMW’s take on faux leather, a vinyl called Sensatec. It’s not convincing as leather because it’s too firm, but actual leather is available for $1,500. Seats themselves are adjustable in a myriad of ways, with niceties like power height adjustment for the headrest, and power side bolsters. There’s also a manual adjustment for the thigh extension cushion.

Legroom is plentiful in the front and more than adequate in the rear. Rear seat passengers sit behind a six-foot front seat occupant with knee room to spare. Cargo space in the trunk is on par with the class, though it lacks any grocery bag hooks or cargo management nets to keep items from rolling within the cavernous expanse. Other missing items include a rear sunshade and ventilated seats. Upon building this car on the BMW configurator, it appears ventilated seats are not available on this trim.

With all the aforementioned seat adjustments, your author still couldn’t get comfortable behind the wheel. Back and side support was fine, and the headrest was nicely placed. But the seat cushion was too flat and a bit on the firm side. Even though there was plenty of thigh support, there was also numb bum after a two-hour highway jaunt.

Speaking of jaunts, out on the open expanses of I-75 the 530 proves itself a capable cruiser. The throttle pedal is responsive and easy to learn and modulate. The 5-Series presents itself as an easy car to drive, where anyone can hop in and go (caveats below). Steering is not as engaging as one expects from an Ultimate Driving Machine BMW and feels a bit rubbery and dead. The eight-speed ZF transmission is excellent and slides through the gears quickly and efficiently as long as the car is not in Sport mode. Brakes were strong, but there was a pulsation through the pedal on this 20k mile example and felt like it needed work on the left rear rotor.

Modes of Comfort, Sport, and Eco Pro adjust the steering weight and throttle pedal response, but don’t actually make a performance difference. Within their standard settings, they’re also individually adjustable as far as characteristics. Sport mode in particular is unsuitable for highway travel, as it holds the car a gear lower than it should be even in steady-state cruising on a flat surface.

The large sedan travels nicely along the interstate and soaks up bumps in a controlled manner. The cabin is quiet inside, with no notable wind noise to speak of at high speed. Some tire and road noise comes through but is well controlled.

On hilly back roads, the 5 is not as happy. The softer suspension setup allows for roll during aggressive driving. And even though the grip is excellent with the xDrive setup, it’s impossible to hide the 3,878 pounds of the 530i. The use of Sport mode in such situations merely makes the steering heavier and the throttle firmer, while causing harsher gear changes.

Though a 5-Series might serve reasonably as an occasional back road companion, it comes up short in the power department. The heft of this large car is motivated by a 2.0-liter inline-four, good for 248 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque. Foot down after a corner, the 530 simply lacks the grunt to force itself forward with gusto. Each horse under the hood must pull around 15.63 pounds, and you feel it. BMW claims 6.5 seconds to 60, but it certainly doesn’t feel that fast. After about 70 percent interstate driving and 30 percent back roads and in town, mpg averaged 34.8 over 258 miles.

The engine itself is without any notable NVH at idle, though it sounds thrashy when pushed hard. Standing outside the 5 at idle, there’s a decent amount of unrefined chatter from the engine where it almost sounds like it could be a diesel.

While piloting the 530i, the driver is presented with much information via the large central screen. The screen can be directed via BMW’s iDrive wheel, or by touch. Dependent upon the information required, a mixed-use approach is reasonable.

The gauges are digital on a clear screen but present too much information. Said information can be edited in a number of ways, but there is no option for the look of traditional analog gauges. In the same way, the center screen has many layers of information and options.

It’s all a bit overwhelming, as some settings are buried four or five menus deep. It takes a while to figure out where everything is and set up the car to the driver’s preference. Preferences are catered to: Lighting color is adjustable, as are the particulars of almost everything. No matter driver preference, the car starts out in Comfort after each ignition cycle. Telling.

Even with copious preferential options, the 5-Series does its best to have you drive how it wants you to drive. Stop-start is defeated by a button under the ignition but times out after a while and turns itself off whenever the car is switched to park. The stop-start’s function is quick at lights, but certainly not smooth. Speaking of unsmooth: Lane-departure assistance is direct and aggressive, tugging the wheel and tutting the driver constantly to stay in the exact center point of the lane. It was turned off within 20 minutes because it was so aggressive.

The cruise control is also annoying. If the system is on and a driver sets the speed but is traveling above the posted limit, the cruise is set to the posted limit. The driver must intervene and direct the cruise (via the + button) to set it at the current speed. Similarly annoying is the automatic parking brake, which activates not only when the car is put in park, but also when it’s moved from reverse to drive. A perplexing programming choice. Collision warnings (too close to the car in front) are laissez-faire, and should not be relied upon.

There are a few nice features here that are well thought out. On warm days the car prompts the driver to activate preemptive ventilation to cool the cabin, which can be turned on immediately or scheduled. The backup camera’s image is very clear. And the intelligent voice command can process complete sentences with ease. I suggested, “Show me the highest rated restaurants nearby,” and the BMW assistant returned a list of restaurants in the vicinity sorted by Yelp rating. Nice.

Light comes into the cabin via a large sunroof, and climate control cooled the black interior admirably at a sunny 84 degrees. Android Auto and Apple Carplay are both present and accounted for, and via Bluetooth. The BMW navigation was easy to set up, especially via the aforementioned voice command. Simply say “destination is,” and then the full address. It works every time without button pressing. BMW’s basic audio system does not impress, and provides neither exceptional clarity nor a nice sound – it’s just sort of there.

And that sums up the 530i xDrive, unfortunately. Aside from the okay driving dynamics, it’s a car that adds frustrating electronic interference at every turn. It’s “an amount of German car” which is neither powerful nor all that pleasing. It most definitely does not feel special.

Your author is left wondering who this particular car is for. The performance driving enthusiast, the value-minded motorist, the mpg enthusiast? No to all of those, as the 2.0 isn’t up to performance driving, the base price is too high for a cheapskate, and the fuel economy isn’t great enough to impress. It’s a nice rental though: Use it a few days, give it back, and forget it shortly thereafter. When spending this sort of money, absolutely pony up the $6,000 or so and get the 540i xDrive with inline-six. You’re probably a banker, sell some securities if need be.

[Images © 2022 Corey Lewis/The Truth About Cars]

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Sounds thoroughly mediocre. My longtime trusted Porsche/M-B/BMW shop has been warning customers about the cheap BMW materials and build quality for some time (trim pieces routinely breaking upon removal etc.).

It seems BMW has nailed one critical thing here: how much gunk can be picked up by the “piano” black trim.

This review isn’t surprising – unless you’re spending a TON of money, BMWs haven’t been special for some time now. This sounds a lot like a German Impala.

For two grand more, you get an A6 with the turbo six. Sold.

I have to agree. Several years ago I drove a 3 year old lease-spec 5 series. I might as well have been driving an Accord or an Impala.

I don’t mind spending money. I do mind spending it stupidly.

And for 20 grand less, you get a Toyota Sienna that drives about the same and is 10x more practical. So … what exactly is all that money buying? Just a few roundel badges?

Yes, the path to Sienna ownership often involves a trip to the BMW store.

I get your point, but the two cars I drive are a BMW sedan and a Japanese minivan, so I feel somewhat qualified to make the comparison. What can I say, I’m a vehicular omnivore. I just want to open people’s eyes. :)

Well, I suppose a loaded-up Sienna might not be much less money than this “BMW,” so you do have a point!

For two grand more, Lexus is calling.

Agreed – I’d take an ES with the V-6 and AWD over this. But if we’re going Ze German Vay (i.e., dump it when the lease is over), the A6 will run rings around the 530 for a couple grand more, and the interior is far nicer.

The unfortunate Truth About BMWs is that anything that they make that isn’t comically expensive pretty much sucks. The 550 version of this car is legit, but now you’re talking eighty, easy.

For whatever reason, Lexus wont let you have awd with the V6. You’re stuck with the 2.5 Camry 4 cylinder if you want awd.

That said, I’d still take a fwd ES350 over this base 5 series.

““Show me the highest rated restaurants nearby,” and the BMW assistant returned a list of restaurants in the vicinity sorted by Yelp rating. Nice.”

There’s nothing neither nice nor impressive, nor even all that particularly useful about that.

“Show me highest rated Italian, Mexican or Steak restaurants which I, per your observation of my driving will be passing close to between 12 and 1 tomorrow, which has a table for two available and doesn’t cost more than the chip powering this voice assistant; then make a reservation once your estimate of my progress starts to look reasonably firm” would be something approaching useful.

Useful commentary here about things cars can actually do.

How disappointing to read. It almost sounds like my 2021 Mazda CX-5 turbo is better, and at a much lower price. No “pleather” either and no cheap-feeling parts. The prestige brands can be very disappointing.

I think my Honda Accord is better than this rolling Scheiß-pile!

The car actually overrides the driver when setting the cruise, and defaults TO THE POSTED LIMIT??!! Try that on any Detroit-area freeway, and see how long before someone punts you into low-Earth orbit! Or worse!

To be fair, I have a 2022 X5 45e with the full Driver Assist Package (adaptive cruise + autosteer) and it does not do that. But I might’ve had to turn it off in the settings.

I was hoping that could be turned off via a setting someplace! The speed limit sign recognition can be disabled on any vehicle that comes so-equipped (except with Tesla, maybe, since you can’t set a speed higher than ten-over), so hopefully disabling that would also disable any links between other driving aids.

How have you enjoyed your X5 xDrive45e? It’s on the very short overlapping list of cars both I and my wife might be able to agree on at the moment. $80k for an example with the options that make it feel like an actual luxury car feels very steep, but the powertrain seems just right on paper.

I would agree. In fact, I would probably take the CX-5 *with prices being equal*. In the real world, picking the CX-5 is even better, because you get $20,000 to play with. That could pay for, like, half a year of college for one kid.

Sounds like a rather sad car…..

Not surprising, though. 2.0 turbo 4s are dull as all that, and the past 10 years of run-amuck ECB theft, has rendered more and more of once-competitive German industry, in pretty much the same state The Fed and BOE left US and English one 40-50 years prior: unable to meet price targets, without cost-saving-on-the-things-which-really-matters themselves into ever increasing irrelevance.

Germans too now, just like the Anglos before them, “make money” off their “homes” now. With “earnings,” as always and everywhere, paid for by the dwindling few who still bother attempting to do something productive. Making doing productive stuff, simply too expensive to be competitive.

I think 35 MPG is impressive in a large car. Sounds like a crappy way to spend $60 k.

I went back and forth about it. It’s not bad fuel economy considering the size of the car, but nothing worth bragging. If MPGs are the concern there are many -many- other options that do it better.

I had an almost identical car as a rental as well. (thanks for the upgrade, National) As a highway cruiser, it was fantastic. I managed to get it closer to 40 mpg, which I found amazing. Picked it up at Detroit Metro. First fill-up was at a Costco in Knoxville. Second fill was in Gainesville FL. I could have gotten to Big Pine Key FL without another gas stop, but I know gas is cheaper on the mainland, so I stopped to top off outside Homestead FL. I thought it was pretty amazing TBH. But would I drop 60k on the car? Not a chance.

Was this review written by someone’s grandmother? Kidding. Maybe.

The writing style is a bit… affected.

But, this writeup also contains more useful information and insights than any five Healey “reviews” so I’d call it a win. Impressive turnaround time, too.

Grandmas always see the big picture – what we have here is a prime example of how to get mired in nagging detail. Not a single mention of RWD.

“The 530i forms the base of the range at $54,200, whereas the all-wheel-drive version (this tester) asks for $56,500. The 530e models are plug-in hybrids that add 40 more horsepower to the base 2.0-liter’s 248. A rear-drive 530e asks $55,550, while xDrive is $57,850.”

There you go. All you gotta do is read.

Sounds like an aging car that needs a new generation… soon. Excellent review!

Another Bucky Beaver schnoz, comin’ up!

Like my LUNCH after having to look at one of the things! To think that BMW stylists could pull something out of the toilet that makes Chris Bangle’s stuff look good!

“It most definitely does not feel special.”

Yup. I’ve had this car a few times as a loaner. Too much gloss, too soft, too boring and not anywhere close to being worth the asking price.

It’s a big, slightly better prior gen 320i, another car that embarrassed BMW with cheapness all around. Compare this to an E350 and it’s obvious which brand phoned it in and which one put effort into design. The E costs less and you get more power. The Genesis G80 makes the difference even more obvious.

Not sure why anyone would buy a 5 series.

The 530e at least gives a little bit of whimsy from the hybrid equipment and with the tax credit it ends up being the cheapest one.

So to sum up, it has the speed, handling, interior refinement, and equipment level of a RAV4 XLE, without the easy-access ride height or the low sticker price.

If I’m going to pay stupid money for a two point oh tee, I at least want a Volvo-quality interior to go with it.

Hey, no fair, you’re making BMW cry…

The question is: is it better than Cadillac, can it compete with Opel Insignia RIP, and Ford Mondeo (still alive in China)?

Like others here, I also had this (almost) exact model as a rental, only in 1980’s appliance white. A few observations to add: I thought the 2.0T was very thrashy. Stop/start sent a very sudden shock through the car, and at higher revs, it was a ragged mess. The 2.0T in my family’s Audis and the one in my ex-POS VW was far smoother heading up the rev range, although stop/start was also sometimes violent and caught napping. Highway fuel economy was stunning for a vehicle of this size and weight. Easily got 35+ mpg cruising. It was very comfortable for long distance cruising and didn’t transmit a lot of noise in. It just wasn’t what we remember as BMW-smooth in the engine/transmission department. iDrive is somewhat better but like everyone else in this pointless arms race, way too much is buried in submenus. As a rental, the learning curve was fairly steep to find simple things. But I agree with others saying that the turbo-4 has no place in this car except to pass Europe’s CO2 standard and fuel economy averages. It is not a sport or luxury car engine.

It should be called the 5/2.0T. A real 1994 530i is a great car.

Seems like a V6 Camry does basically everything equal or better at half the cost. How far BMW has fallen.

Bingo. But it’s not just BMW. As the review points out, manufacturers keep adding digital features, but the vast majority of them are close to useless, and in fact detract from the driving experience. Chassis and engine performance has increased dramatically over the last 20 years, but then a lot of it has been taken back out as performance models are put into a tiny, super-expensive niche category. And even the high-performance models have been numbed down and dumbed down, making the experience fast but bland.

Unless a lot of travel is done at sustained 80+mph, the Germans are falling further behind every generation. It’s no longer economically viable to make cars there competitively anymore; in markets where they can’t call Brussels to ensure regulations arbitrarily disadvantage everyone else.

BMW’s Laserlight, and chances are similar from the other big3 German luxos, does illuminate a lot better for driving fast at night than anything else I’ve seen which takes other trafficants into consideration. But I’m not sure they even sell those in the US. And supposedly even a simple cracked lens, requires the whole unit to be changed, costing almost as much as a Camry…..

Of course, since such headlights is an area the Germans still have a competitive advantage at, it won’t be long before that will be mandatory across the EU….. for safety of the children….. And when almost noone in the EU can afford the darned things, the ECB just needs to put dead guys’ faces on some more paper pieces, to ensure the “portfolios” of the deadweights who increasingly form the BMW-class “goes up” while they sit there on their rear….. America 1971 all over. With the same sorry ending.

Lease bait, does anyone actually buy these things?

With their entire bank account forked-over for repairs!

A 1990 525i started at $74k in today’s money. A 535i started at $94,000. Today, in the upper $50s it’s only $10k more than the median vehicle price for April 2022 which was $46k. In 1990 a 5 Series was more than 2x the price of the average 1990 new vehicle. Now it’s 25% more.

There is cost cutting but it’s also dramatically cheaper. Something to keep in mind in the review.

Yes, BMW used to make luxury cars. Now they make this.

Pass. Which is a pity, as the E34 5er is literally my favorite car of all time. For the same $60k, buy an Accord and then spend the balance on this:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1994-bmw-530i-touring-6/

I mean, we’re a long, long way from the E34, to be fair. That was such a different car than the 5 Series (this one is codenamed G30) is now.

I recently picked up a 2000 528i 5MT (which is the E39). It should be an interesting experience. It’s also an interesting foil to my 2022 X5 45e.

My father bought an E34 in 1994 and then an E39 in 2000. Truth be told I actually liked the E34 better, I found the E39 cramped and I prefer the E34’s looks. But both of those generations, plus the E36 and E46 3 series and the E38 7, in my mind represent the pinnacle of BMW, and if I could wave a magic wand and order up a factory-new version, I would happily drive a car from any of those model runs over anything on the road today.

The BMW 5-series used to be a truly special vehicle during an era when there wasn’t really any other remotely interesting way to transport 4 or 5 adults comfortably. Now there are almost too many other options.

I can understand why manufacturers (and consumers) no longer care about mid-size sedans: now that efficiency and driving dynamics of crossovers/small SUVs have caught up, there’s no reason to sacrifice the extra room and safety for a mostly uninspired sedan like the current 5er.

You’ve bought into a lot of BS. Plenty of folks have been shocked to find out how much of a fuel economy, ride quality and driving dynamic penalty comes with buying the SUV version vs. the sedan version of a given platform.

Agreed. But a major part of the problem [IMO] is that few consumers want a sedan’s functional advantages to a degree that eliminates the viability of a crossover as an option for them [BMW has gone on record many times asserting that the bulk of its customers wanted the suppression of enthusiast-oriented traits]. Hence the gradual dilution of many once-sporty sedans [or at least their mainstream variants] into sensory deprivation chambers that lack meaningful advantages over crossovers.

On an unrelated BMW-bashing note:

Last night I saw two BMWs coupes parked next to each other at Target – a late ’80s 6-series, and a current X4. The former was simple, elegant and lovely; the latter was a porcine piece of crap with a Bucky Beaver grille.

Metaphor for the BMW brand as a whole? I think so.

First of all this is a good review, I like the detail on the fit and finish of a new BMW, as I haven’t ridden or driven a recent example. It’s sad, because the first truly special car I’ve ever driven was as a 19 year old touring Italy with my family. All 5 of us somehow fit in an e34 520i automatic. The steering was glorious , even in comparison to the unassisted rack on my mk1 GTI I owned at the time. And at higher speeds it was quiet and the suspension was well damped without any float. I had to own a Bimmer. Several years later I bought a used e36 and kept it for over 150k miles before buying a zhp e46.Thats the last roundel I’ve owned.

It seems powerful I6 turbo is the only 5er worth owning, but even then, interior quality /design trails others.

My money would go to Genesis if I were interested in a big sedan.

However, the new 2 looks really good, and is getting good reviews , but no manual is available.

Pretty harsh review. I too had a rental 530i for a week long trip from Florida to New England and back. Right before that I had an Audi A6 Quattro for a similar but shorter trip (Virginia was the final destination) and could compare the two. In general I preferred the Audi’s slightly more buttoned down ride and better handling and seemingly more spacious interior but not by a lot. Some of the BMW tech gee-gaws were of debatable value and the first thing I did was defeat the lane centering assist. Otherwise I enjoyed the 530, it was exceptional on gas and offered plenty of mid-range torque for the high speed interstates like I-95 and I-81. What I liked best about both was despite being daily rentals with mileage in the high-teens on both, they were tight and rattle free, more than could be said for a new Maxima Platinum I had a few weeks later, admittedly a significantly cheaper car. Certainly BMW and Mercedes have become more mainstream and less “special”, but I still thought highly of it and were I in the market for a 50-60 grand sedan, it’d be on my list.

Did the A6 have the four or the six?

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