Spy Shots: BMW 5-Series GT
by Jonathon Ramsey on May 12th 2009 at 9:57AM 
A couple of near production-ready 5-Series GTs have been caught on BMW's home turf, and to our eyes they don't hurt the car, but they don't make a case for it either. The last time we were in this situation -- hoping a car's production version would be a huge improvement over it's pre-production form -- was with the Porsche Panamera, and we know how that ended. While we're certain this Progressive Activity Sedan has some purpose, we wonder where are all of these potential buyers are who supposedly demand a little more cargo room than a 5 Series sedan, a little less than a wagon, and one less seat. Check out more photos by clicking the image above.
[Source: 5post]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
sk 9:37AM (5/12/2009)
Honda Insight rear end?
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SS 6:43PM (5/12/2009)
Its a modern Kamm tail and I think it looks better than a plain hatchback (a version thats common in Europe for almost all cars these days)After all Wunibald Kamm was German and BMW made one the first Kamm tailed cars way back in 1930s.
Jens 9:55AM (5/12/2009)
a Toyota Prius with a BMW face.
First came the current line of uninspired inspired interior designs, then the X6, and now this. "Ultimate Driving Machine" no more. No wonder Audi sales are up.
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audi_arena 10:22AM (5/12/2009)
I'm not going to lie, the X6 looks pretty badass in person. Granted, it drives like a Ford F150, but for what it is (an image vehicle), the thing looks damn good.
Luis 10:37AM (5/12/2009)
I agree...the X6 is totally bad-ass in person. It's big and brawny.
zamafir 10:56AM (5/12/2009)
indeed, the x6 is very well weighted visually in person. It's hard to go off on the 5 series GT when audi's working on the same sort of thing. Oh well.
Bloke 11:00AM (5/12/2009)
The 5-series liftback will only be sold in Europe - at least initially - where E-segment hatchbacks haven't been anything unusual over the years.
Nellydesign 10:13AM (5/12/2009)
Those 16" wheels aren't helping. They look positively tiny. How is this different (design-wise) from the Hyundai Elantra GT from a few years ago? Oh right, this one will cost $70,000.
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Jsams4131 10:13AM (5/12/2009)
WTF is that?! bmw has gone down the Sh*tter...call it what it is ---> A station wagon
and if I see an M of this ....the M5 GT laff
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BoxerFanatic 10:25AM (5/12/2009)
Basically it is an X6 turned back into a semi-normal car, and with the 5-series identifier, as it should have. 6 is for coupes, and X6 is no coupe, no matter what they say.
The M-logo on this car would make much more sense than the M-logo on the X6.
With a sleek roof, lift-back hatch, turbo up-draft V8, and a dual-clutch or traditional manual gearbox, and M-stuff... It might not be that bad, especially not jacked up as big as a house, like the X6 is.
BMW has done worse. The X6 being one of those.
545 GT M-sport could be somewhat interesting... (544 sounds too odd...)
Quattroporte 10:32AM (5/12/2009)
" ---> "
You can press and hold the "Alt" key while typing in "26" on the numpad and then release the "Alt" key to obtain this symbol:" → "
OR, for this symbol " ► " you can press and hold "Alt" while typing in "16" using only the keyboard's numpad.
Kumar 10:47AM (5/12/2009)
A station wagon is more useful. Besides, the 5 station wagon looks pretty sweet.
This is just some $port hatch. Kindof reminds me of the 3 series coup monstrosity from the early 90s.
Bloke 11:19AM (5/12/2009)
Jasams - think Renault 30, Lancia Gamma (sans full liftback) and Citroen XM. That's all this car is.
zamafir 12:03PM (5/12/2009)
"A station wagon is more useful. Besides, the 5 station wagon looks pretty sweet."
BMW doesn't sell cars like the x6 or this to be useful, they rightly (as I'm slowly coming to terms with, lol) sell them because it can entice a few buyers here and there. Kind of a shot gun approach, 5 series, 5 series GT, 5 series wagon, there, hopefully all potential buyers in the medium size class of cars have been successfully netted. :D
UH2L 12:03PM (5/12/2009)
Hatchbacks and wagons rule. Europeans have realized it, and now the trend is shifting here. I like this BMW, which is hard for me to say.
Stationwagons may seem like they're always more useful, but I have a wagon and a hatch. The opening on my 1997 900 S is bigger, makes putting stuff in and taking it out easier. Plus, with a non-independent suspension, the floor of the cargo area is lower so I can fit almost as much stuff, but taller things better. The 9-3 SportCombi does have a nice rectangular space and is longer so that helps with putting my road bicycle in.
RITmusic2k 12:32PM (5/12/2009)
Agreed, UH2L!
I never liked anything at all about hatchbacks, until I took a chance and bought one. After that revelation of how useful and stylish they can be, I became a convert.
I'm on my second consecutive hatchback now, and I don't think I'd go for any other body style in future purchases. I actually think this car is quite handsome... though I'm especially looking forward to how they pull this off in the new 9-5.
James 3:55PM (5/12/2009)
This car is not a station wagon, or it wouldn't exist! There already IS a 5-wagon, and I personally wouldn't buy one.
I actually think the concept for the vehicle is nice, and I actually think these spy photos look great. (Although honestly I'm more interested in the front end because in the US I could really only drive the 5-sedan with a straight face.)
However, I keep asking myself -- even if this is sold only in Europe, are there really that many picky buyers who wanted more versatility than the sedan, but think the wagon is too ungainly, and the X5/X6 too high off the ground?
This is an even harder case to make for the 3-series GT that is supposed to debut at Frankfurt. Are there really that many people for who can't choose between an X1, X3, 3-series sedan, and 3-series wagon that you need a 3 GT on the market? They can't be expecting extremely high sales figures...
Bloke 10:26AM (5/12/2009)
It's no X6. It's a straightforward 5-series liftback. The modern day equivalent of the Renault 30.
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t_bracelin 10:28AM (5/12/2009)
U-G-L-Y!!!!
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dukeisduke 10:31AM (5/12/2009)
Ug.ly.
And AB's posting engine sucks.
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