BMW 5 Series 7th generation revealed; all you need to know

After a batch of images leaked online, German luxury carmaker BMW officially unveiled next generation of the 5 Series sedan. The seventh generation of the 5 Series sedan has been introduced with a new design, new set engines, more tech, and better fuel efficiency along with weight reduction.

The design of the new 5 Series is not a departure from the current version. The face features fresh design which is the blend of 3 Series and 7 Series. The LED adaptive headlights now flow into the traditional kidney grille. The grille now features slats that close when required for better aerodynamics. On the sides, the bottom character line has been borrowed from the 7 Series. Redesigned tail lamps are now sleek and reworked bumper combined adds much needed freshness to the rear of the sedan. The new 5 Series will feature dual exhaust outlets on all models.

The sedan has grown in terms of proportions. Latest generation's length has increased by 36mm to 4,935mm, width extended by 6mm to 1,868mm and height gone up by 2mm to 1,466mm. The wheelbase has also increased by 7mm in addition to the predecessor's 2,975mm. The new 5 Series adopts BMW's new Cluster Architecture (CLAR) platform structure that uses predominantly aluminium body. This has helped the car to shed weight up to 100kg.

The interior has been spruced up with BMW's iDrive 6.0 infotainment system with gesture control, voice control, and heads-up display. All the increase in dimension freed up more interior space. It can fit five adults without adjustments now. The sedan is offered with optional 16-speaker, 600-watt Harmon Kardon sound system.

The sedan will be sold in 2.0-litre petrol engine with 191hp in 520i variant, 3.0-litre petrol mill developing 251hp in the 530i and 340hp in the 340i. The diesel variants include 518d, 520d, 520d Efficient Dynamics and 525d models, all powered by 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo unit. The 530d will use 265hp turbocharged 3.0-litre six-cylinder diesel engine.

The new 5 Series is expected to debut at the 2017 Frankfurt motor show. Sales for global markets will start from February 2017.