m630

agreed, the 5ers will be the last to get the new 4.8 as the 7ers then the 6ers will get it first... i think it will be within a year from the first 750s before we see a 550

pennetta

I think if this is all true, the 5 will get it asap. Car manufactures use Just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing, as such there is never an inventory of anything.
BMW is responding to Mercedes Benz's horsepower assault in every category. "Business as usual" is not in order here. We buy BMW's because they are supposed to be more sporting and now they have been behind the curve for a few years. They can only compete with higher HP or much lighter weight. I've had two MB's and three BMW's and I made the switch to BMW solely because of the sporting superiority.
The 545's power is adequate but for $70K it should be excessive; my brothers Subaru is virtually as fast.

EBMCS03

Wait what do you mean "exclusive" do you mean MORE HP?? If not then it is in a way isnt it? The Scoobie doesnt have all the other luxury / comfort and bells and whistles as the E60...

Or do you mean for $70K it only has 325HP and just as much of not less then the bells and whistles of Japanese cars?

pennetta

Wait what do you mean "exclusive" do you mean MORE HP?? If not then it is in a way isnt it? The Scoobie doesnt have all the other luxury / comfort and bells and whistles as the E60...

Or do you mean for $70K it only has 325HP and just as much of not less then the bells and whistles of Japanese cars?
[/quote]
I said excessive not exclusive. My comment had less to do with my brothers Subaru than it did with Mercedes Benz surge in HP. The Subby comment was sarcastic.

EBMCS03

Oh HAHAHHAA Alright I'll go back to 2nd grade. Ya... thats true... it should be excessive... like Ahhhhhhh thats too much power I need to back off and only use 3/4 throttle

pennetta

Oh HAHAHHAA Alright I'll go back to 2nd grade. Ya... thats true... it should be excessive... like Ahhhhhhh thats too much power I need to back off and only use 3/4 throttle
[/quote]
I also own something that goes from 0-60 in about half the time it takes my 545 to get there. So its all a matter of perspective.
I love the car and was quoted in Autoweek as saying "this was the best car I every had". This thread was about the 5 getting more power and the question was asked "were you pissed", as you can tell I am not.

wolverine

'

I absolutely disagree. There really is no good reason to put an upgraded engine into the 545 in the next two years. The 545 is selling incredibly well, significantly better than the previous 540. Why would BMW put a heavier, more expensive engine into a car that is probably exceeding all sales expectations? The only reasons I can think of is if there is a need in the market to increase the HP, or they can do it for a minimal cost.

No one I know of has complained about the power in the 545. I don't think increasing the HP will significantly increase sales.

The cost of the 4.8 will be more than the 4.4. To make business sense, they would either have to charge more to make the same profit, or they would decrease their profit margin, and sell a higher volume of cars. Remember, the 'upgraded' 540 engine was the same engine with some minor modifications. This 4.8 liter is a new engine. The only way they will put this engine into the 540 is if it can be done for a minimal cost increase, and they can justify a higher price.

If they do upgrade to the 4.8, I think it will be with a new model designation, such as 550, and certainly not within the next two model years.

pennetta

'

I absolutely disagree. There really is no good reason to put an upgraded engine into the 545 in the next two years. The 545 is selling incredibly well, significantly better than the previous 540. Why would BMW put a heavier, more expensive engine into a car that is probably exceeding all sales expectations? The only reasons I can think of is if there is a need in the market to increase the HP, or they can do it for a minimal cost.

No one I know of has complained about the power in the 545. I don't think increasing the HP will significantly increase sales.

The cost of the 4.8 will be more than the 4.4. To make business sense, they would either have to charge more to make the same profit, or they would decrease their profit margin, and sell a higher volume of cars. Remember, the 'upgraded' 540 engine was the same engine with some minor modifications. This 4.8 liter is a new engine. The only way they will put this engine into the 540 is if it can be done for a minimal cost increase, and they can justify a higher price.

If they do upgrade to the 4.8, I think it will be with a new model designation, such as 550, and certainly not within the next two model years.
[/quote]
If your point is do we want to spend another $10,000 for a 4.8 verses a 4.4 then I think the answer is no for most of us.
We are in the most exciting time in auto history since the HP wars of the 60's- early seventies. To put in perspective my friend has a 1986 Lamborghini Countach, fast as hell by anyones account, in reality its 0.1 second faster 0-60 and 1/4 mile than the 545 (as reported in R&T) 5.2 & 13.7 verses 5.3 & 13.8 sec respectively. When this happens the consumers benefit and the manufactures make less money. Lets all enjoy what we now have.

5 Rakete

When you consider that BMW themselves ran a commercial extolling the fact that most drivers only use a fraction of a car's capability then "excessive", especially for the top of the series, is not inappropriate.

CRRobert

Well, all I can say is that I am happy with mine. I just drove from Denver, CO to El Paso, TX, and love the power. As with Pennetta, I have something that will go to 60 alot faster than my 545. I am not taking my 545 drag racing.

Some more driving to San Diego tommorrow.

I did lease, so in three years I can upgrade, but not to a 550 unless there are some better features, I would upgrade to the M5 however.