KenTO

I have an M5 and I am completely satisfied, I do not want more. That being said, I think it depends on what kind of driving you do. If it is mostly city driving and you aren't going over 60, the 525 is fine, but I think if you do a lot of driving on the highway and are a more aggresive driver, you may find the power lacking.

On the other hand I do feel the 525 is one of the best deals going, especially in Canada with low interest rates and good deals, etc. Plus you probably would save money by not getting so many speeding tickets.

bmw4life

Thanks, jiio, it handles a lot better than stock 17inchers, i can keep up on turns now

GuruGreg

The 525 is a nice car to have.... Power is something very subjective.... feel is another......

For those who think the 525 is underpowered, well, the sky is the limit then..... How much is enough power? When you buy a BMW, you buy a lifestyle, a package complete with what you have paid for (eg. 325 or 550 or M5 etc....).. It is certainly not the fastest, nor the best handling nor the most economical, nor the most prestigious, not the biggest, not the smallest (scrapping the barrel here now) etc.....

The 525 is a nice compromise for 'normal' people.... for those who have alot more to spend, sure, M5 baby......

But in terms of power, badge, economy, price, looks, size and comfort, the 525 is superb VALUE.....

Stop comparing it to the 550s and the M5s..... How often can you harness all that power??? With a 550, you get alot more power, but sacrifice fuel economy (why would you worry about this if you bought a 550???)... You drive faster and your brakes (probably) wear quicker due to (possibly) harder deceleration.... but as mentioned, if you have a huge budget, then this wouldn't worry you.....

Happy hunting.......

snkpkp

With the new horsepower race the 215 bhp really seems low but it really isnt. When do we really need all that power? I sure like all the torque kicking my back to the seat, but in todays gas prices and heavy traffic load in So Cal I think its really wise to get a 525i, however I would suggest to get it in Manual tranny. But end of the day its up to you.

300TTto545

Everyday (well almost everyday) I see full throttle and near red line in my 545. That being said - I think a lot of people wouldn't - the vast majority of drivers.

The 525 is an excellent car - the gas mileage will get us back into these. The hard part is that for 1/2 the price, you can get a slightly faster car that handles quite well and has very good options. BMW (to many, myself included) is about the ULTIMATE driving machine - like it or not, straight line performance matters. My fiance would be happy in a 525, but she would also be happy in a Honda Accord for a lot less. If you are not getting a superior performing car - why get a 5 series? I love the stability at 120 MPH and active roll control - but the average driver doesn't care.

jlcool007

well gents, i av a e34 525ia and a e34 m5 3.6l

i hit 110 daily on the 525 while flooring it and bringing each gear to 5000 rpm's

in the m5, i can ring it to only 2500 and still get to 100 without flooring it.

power is all relative, i mean my 17 year old 269,399 mile 525 is a nice car, it still looks like new. But the m5 is just a beast with 320hp and what not. the old 5er only had 172hp and i can still bring it hard to cars...in the turns that is....

what im sying is that in cali or the us, 65mph is not fast enough to go with a big v8 or 400/500 horsepower. id take one any day, but in reality, its just a waste of gas.

-jason

jrsamps

My theory on life is that you can never have enough power, if it doesn't scare you..

Darron.Lowe

Hi All,

I have a 525d and had a loaner 525i for 2 days. (both autos)

On the whole, i prefered my diesel as i often drive low down in the rev range and prefer the torque. The 525i was 'ok' but found it had to drop a few gears to really accelerate.

My two pence (or cents) is that the car is fine if you are willing to rev it whereas the larger engines do not need to.

The car was fine, you just need to alter your driving style to suite - if you want more power its just because more wants more and you will never truly be happy with what you have. I know as i'd love to have more power but admit i do not really need it.

The Kloser

Living in Honolulu, with a 30 min. straight line drive to work, tons of traffic lights, and an average speed limit of 35 mph. (of course we usually are doing 45 - 50 mph). The 525 has enough power, is very quiet and very comfortable. It's great

But I consider trading in for a 550 or 650 at least once a month. Just so I could go from stoplight to stoplight a tenth of a second faster.

Bedford530i

I recently had an auto 525xi loaner for a couple of days and I found it adequate for my daily driving (compared to my 225hp 530i).