[Auto] Tested: 2024 BMW 540i xDrive Plays the Dating Game

[7aMoDi]

From the September/October 2024 issue of Car and Driver. Every new car is a pretty good first date. It's the second and third dates when annoyances start to reveal themselves. Add in some competition, and it becomes easier to separate the one you want to settle down with from the rest.

 

HIGHS: "I can't believe it's not a V-12" smoothness, luxury-car isolation, compact-car fuel economy.

When the BMW 540i xDrive visited our office, we were charmed by its incredible inline-six, an engine free of harshness or bad vibes. It's strong too, with 375 horsepower giving the 4365-pound 540i the ability to leap to 60 mph in 4.0 seconds. The powerful six has a good mate in its eight-speed automatic partner. Gear-changes are smooth, and downshifts come quickly. There's a slickness to the entire powertrain, as if friction does not apply. It pays dividends in fuel economy, with the 3.0-liter returning 37 mpg in our 75-mph highway test.

 

Sounds like love, right? Well, we were pretty smitten—until a 2024 Mercedes-Benz E450 rolled in like an attractive contestant number two. Next to the Benz, the 540i suddenly felt a size too big. There's a sense that there's less glass, and as a result, the cabin seems more confining. Drive the two back to back, and the BMW's reactions and feel-free steering make it seem heavier than the Benz, despite weighing 101 pounds less.

 

LOWS: Feels larger than it is, aloof handling, some steering feel would be nice.

Both have a supple ride, though the Benz's optional adaptive dampers can go softer than our BMW's electronically controlled units, making them more suitable to Michigan roads. The 540i takes corners with ease, but there's an aloofness to the handling, largely due to the steering, which is light on both effort and feedback.

Still, we're grateful for the turbocharged six. We also like the look and finish of the 540i's interior, although the digital gauges could be easier to read—the cluster offers different display options, all terrible—and the infotainment system's menus are daunting at first. The rear seats are adult-ready, and front-seat comfort is excellent. You'll be fidget-free for the duration of a tank of gas, which at 37 mpg will last 580 miles.

 

Graced with charm and an engine so smooth that you'd think a V-12 might be under the hood, the 540i xDrive is more about luxury than sportiness. The 5-series used to be the mid-size sports sedan to beat, but the more dates we went on, the more it revealed itself to be less of a big 3-series and more of a smaller 7-series.

 

VERDICT: Let's keep it a situationship for now.

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Specifications

 

2024 BMW 540i xDrive
Vehicle Type: front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE
Base/As Tested: $65,895/$83,595
Options: Executive package (remote engine start, heated steering wheel, sky lounge roof, glass controls),  $4450; M Sport Package (21-inch Individual Aero Bicolor 95 wheels, Aluminum Rhombicile trim silver accents, M sport suspension, M steering wheel, Shadowline exterior trim, M Sport exterior elements, M Sport interior elements, M Sport content), $3000; Black/Atlas Gray Merino Leather, $2450; Driving Assistance Pro package (Active Driving Assistant Pro and Highway Assistant), $2000; Luxury Seating package (front ventilated seats, heated front and rear seats), $1350; M Sport Professional package, $1050; Bowers and Wilkins surround sound stereo, $950; Vegas Red Metallic paint, $650

ENGINE
turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve inline-6, aluminum block and head, port and direct fuel injection
Displacement: 183 in3, 2998 cm3
Power: 375 hp @ 6250 rpm
Torque: 398 lb-ft @ 1850 rpm 

TRANSMISSION
8-speed automatic

CHASSIS
Suspension, F/R: multilink/multilink
Brakes, F/R: 14.8-in vented disc/13.6-in vented disc
Tires: Continental EcoContact 6 Q
F: 245/35R-21 102Y Extra Load ★ MO
R: 275/30R-21 96Y Extra Load ★ MO

DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 117.9 in
Length: 199.2 in
Width: 74.8 in
Height: 59.6 in
Passenger Volume, F/R: 55/46 ft3
Trunk Volume: 18 ft3
Curb Weight: 4365 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS
60 mph: 4.0 sec
100 mph: 10.2 sec
1/4-Mile: 12.5 sec @ 111 mph
130 mph: 18.2 sec
150 mph: 26.8 sec
Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.2 sec.
Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 5.0 sec
Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 2.8 sec
Top Speed (gov ltd): 152 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 163 ft
Braking, 100–0 mph: 328 ft

C/D FUEL ECONOMY
Observed: 28 mpg
75-mph Highway Driving: 37 mpg
75-mph Highway Range: 580 mi 

EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined/City/Highway: 28/26/33 mpg 

C/D TESTING EXPLAINED

 

 

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a61973442/2024-bmw-540i-xdrive-test/