Test Drive: 2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

Related articles on Autos Buyer’s Guide: 2010 BMW 5 Series Manufacturer’s web site BMW Canada Join Autos’s Facebook group Follow Autos on Twitter

Review and photos by Jil McIntosh

Find this vehicle in Autos’s Classified Ads

Photo Gallery:
2010 BMW 5 Series GT

It’s generally accepted these days that a “crossover” is a vehicle that straddles the line between sedan and sport-utility. BMW now takes it a step beyond with its all-new Gran Turismo. It’s badged as a 5 Series, but is based on the 7 Series chassis; throw in some X6 touches, stir it all together, and you’ve got a model that generally defies a simple description.

The Gran Turismo, or GT, comes in a single trim line, dubbed the 550i. That’s confusing, because the 550i sedan uses a naturally-aspirated 4.8-litre V8, making 360 units of horsepower and torque alike. Instead, the GT’s 4.8-litre tucks in the twin turbochargers from the 750i and X6 xDrive50i, producing 400 horses and 450 lb-ft of torque. That helps keep the forward oomph at an impressive level, given that the GT outweighs the 550i sedan by a whopping 440 kg, for a total curb weight of 2,240 kg (4,938 lbs).

Still, while it shares that engine with the 750i and X6, it bolts up against a smooth eight-speed automatic as the sole transmission choice. Otherwise, you have to move up to the V12-powered 760Li before you see one of those.

Although it isn’t a hybrid, the 550i GT uses a form of regenerative braking, charging the battery only when the vehicle is braking, coasting or decelerating, for a slight improvement in fuel efficiency. A gauge somewhat reminiscent of that found on the X6 ActiveHybrid indicates when this is happening. On the styling side, the GT features frameless doors, not otherwise found on four-door models sold on this side of the pond.

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

But that’s all the stuff you notice long after your first impression, because the first place your eyes land is on the GT’s rump. It has a silhouette similar to that of the X6 (but better-looking, although it’s still not handsome at the rear) with an unusual liftgate system that can be opened two different ways. The company says it isn’t meant to replace the 5 Series Touring wagon – a model that isn’t currently planned for the redesigned 5 Series lineup – but to offer buyers an additional choice for cargo flexibility.

BMW officially lists the GT with a starting price of $79,600, but that’s misleading, since you can only order it with a mandatory “option” of an Executive Package that adds $4,000, for a true price of $83,600. The package adds a rearview camera, electric side sunshades, ventilated active front seats, heated rear seats, head-up display and Sirius satellite radio. All those are nice additions, but I’m not impressed with the way the company sets up the base pricing charts here.

Performance-wise, the GT is definitely a pleasure to drive, especially if you’ve got a long stretch of empty highway ahead of you, but the razor-sharp performance that makes standouts of models like the 3 and 5 Series sedans is absent here. Buy this as a plush limo and you’ll be happy; expect the full sports-sedan experience, and you might not be as satisfied. It always feels like you’re talking to the car through a translator – in this case, its myriad assortment of electronic assists and drive-by-wire features. Press the accelerator, and you can count half a beat between the time your foot goes down and the car actually takes off, especially if you’re in “Normal” mode (there’s also Sport and Sport Plus).

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

My car was equipped with Active Steering, a $1,900 option, which uses gears and an electric motor to adjust steering angle, depending on the vehicle’s speed. It’s a great system, reducing the number of turns needed to get through parking lots at low speed while providing greater precision at higher speeds. I’ve driven 5 Series models with and without it, and didn’t find that it adversely affected my conversation with the front wheels, so I’m guessing that the GT’s softer, gentler feel is probably the result of tuning more for 7 Series-luxury than 5 Series-style gusto. That said, there is a Dynamic Handling Package available, which adds electronic damper control and adaptive suspension.

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

Braking and cornering are accurate, but you’re always aware of the GT’s weight. The only place you don’t really feel it is on the straightaway. Once you’re over that initial dead spot on the accelerator, the twin turbos deliver delicious speed, without any lag, as far up the speedometer as your respect for your driver’s licence will take you and beyond. The car exhibits a whine on deceleration, though, which I suspect may have something to do with the brake regeneration system. Fuel consumption is officially rated at 14.4 L/100 km (20 mpg Imp) in the city and 9.1 (31) on the highway; I averaged 13.3 (21).

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

The GT’s shared origins with the 7 Series continues inside, where you’ll find that model’s dash layout. It’s been a while since I’ve driven a 5 or a 7 Series sedan, but I felt that the seating position seemed to be higher in the GT. The seats are extremely comfortable, aided with a massage feature and adaptable bolsters, along with heat and ventilation functions. I dislike the shifter, which requires you to push forward from a central default to reach Reverse – in a world where almost every other vehicle requires you to pull it, I think it’s unsafe to deviate. But I’ve finally made my peace with iDrive, which has gradually evolved (or perhaps devolved?) from a horribly complicated system to one that uses buttons alongside the joystick to access functions on the car’s computer screen, including an appreciated “Back” button if you venture too far into unknown territory.

And I’m very fond of a climate control system that has true dual settings: I like leaving my controls on “automatic,” while my husband dislikes that setting and prefers to constantly fiddle with mode and fan buttons. The GT’s let me set mine to a constant temperature, while he could switch everything except defrost to his heart’s content.

2010 BMW 550i Gran Turismo. Click image to enlarge

The 7 Series is all about rear-seat passenger comfort, and so the GT is, too, with plenty of legroom and heated outboard chairs that can be adjusted for seatback angle and fore-and-aft position. An optional package, not added to my tester, turns it into a four-seater, adding rear ventilated comfort power-folding seats and a centre console.

The rear liftgates that set the GT apart from any other BMW also contribute to lousy rearward visibility; the exterior mirrors should be larger, and I ended up using the backup camera extensively. You can open the back end one of two ways. A smaller gate manually flips up, leaving the rear window intact. The larger gate, hinged above the rear window, operates electrically and can be set to any of five opening heights. A foldable barrier behind the rear seats keeps cargo from hitting them and creates a car-like feeling of a separate trunk (I don’t know why you would, but you can fold the rear seatbacks down and still keep the partition up). With the seats up, the cargo area is 87 cm long; with the seats and partition folded – they don’t go quite flat – it’s 170 cm long. Having the two gates means you can toss small items in without waiting for the big gate to open all the way, but I wonder if having two sets of hinges and two seals could increase the possibility of rattles as the GT ages.

Given that North Americans are far fonder of crossovers than they are of traditional wagons, there may be a more sizeable market for this model. I can also see it eclipsing the X6, especially since that line’s V8-powered version is more expensive, has a far more polarizing design, a cramped rear seat, and comes standard with all-wheel drive that some owners may not need or want. (The GT is rear-wheel only.) With the GT, the emphasis is also on occupants as a whole, rather than a driver’s car with creature comforts for passengers added in. It won’t satisfy someone who longs for the wheel of, say, a Z4 or M6, but it isn’t meant to be. Anyone looking for a high-end luxury wagon, crossover, SUV or even a big sedan should definitely be cross-shopping the Gran Turismo.