Where once there was a V8, there is now a 489hp hybrid. We try not to look back in anger...
We rather liked the old BMW 550i. It was hard not to. Here was a car that featured the same 4.4-litre V8 as the M5 - albeit outputting a detuned 530hp - but cost less, tried less hard dynamically and blended into its surroundings like cream into hot coffee. It was the last in a long line of big capacity, petrol-quaffing 5 Series, all of them built to imperiously occupy the outside lane of an autobahn with their indicators on.
But very companionable. Probably we didn’t need another car that exemplifies just how affable a modern hybrid can be, but there’s no denying that some of what the 550e lacks in V8-based fulfilment, it makes back in usability. You can thank the 197hp electric motor embedded in the eight-speed transmission for much of that; assuming you’ve been diligent enough to keep the 19.4 kWh battery topped up the car zips along in fine style.
It helps, of course, that BMW has opted for chassis settings that befit such a serene powertrain. The 550e comes as standard with lowered suspension and something called Adaptive Chassis Professional and while its maker has felt the need to give the drive modes stupid names, the most balanced of these treads the line between soft-riding comfort and BMW-style dynamism very nicely.
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