Ah yes, the venerable BMW 5 Series; the elder statesman of the executive segment. Now in its seventh generation, the 5er is a wily old politician that’s perfected the expectations of it; that being the epitome of a comfortable yet somewhat sporty business sedan, over the ages.

Here however, we’ll be putting the magnifying glass over one of the most underrated generations of the 5 Series, the sixth generation that’s more easily identified by its F10 chassis code.

Although renowned for amalgamating the prerequisites of the 5 Series such as comfort and driving dynamics, many thought that it lacked the panache in design that its two predecessors swaggered onto every road with.

Granted, the E39 and E60 are often benchmarked as the pinnacle of the range with respect to design and suaveness. However, as the F10 has aged, many now acknowledge the timeless design that Jacek Fröhlich penned into its classic, traditional sedan lines that proved to be ahead of its time.

Lest we forget as well, the F10 was the most successful 5 Series generation to date and had led the world’s bestseller lists in its segment for the last 6 years of its production.

Reasons to get an F10 5 Series

The simple answer? Depreciation. There’s no black magic, just plain old economics that takes BMWs a couple of notches down in the price bracket and makes them affordable to some of us that’ll never be able to afford brand new ones.

What’s the complex answer you ask? For starters, there’s the aforementioned fact of the F10 being the best-selling 5er to date, it’s got to count for something. That coupled with its unpretentious styling suddenly undergoing a renaissance in a time of overly complex designs makes for an executive sedan that can still turn heads and corners.

Plus, seeing that it’s powered by two families of engines that have been around for some time now, support and experience in upkeep is abundant from independent BMW specialists so there’s not too much to worry about.

How many variants of the F10 are there?

Over the F10’s run in Malaysia, we were privy to almost all the bread-and-butter variants including a shift into an all-new family of engines.

Launched in May 2010, the F10 was available in 2 CBU variants; the 523i and fire-breathing 535i.

This was also around the onset of Efficient Dynamics, meaning the F10 had Brake Energy Regeneration (BER) and electromechanical steering. The former charges the battery while braking, coasting or decelerating and works out to about a 20 percent reduction in the alternator’s workload.

As for the latter, it meant the steering rack required no power assistance when the wheels were pointed straight or held at a constant angle.

There was also the Integral Active Steering (IAS) that was essentially a rear-wheel steering system.

The driving modes altered transmission shift points, accelerator mapping and the steering ratio.

As the flagship of the duo, the 535i packed a 16-speaker sound system, quad-zone climate control and a multicolour heads-up display.

Towards the end of the year; October 2010 to be exact, BMW Malaysia introduced the 528i that found a home sandwiched between the 523i and the 535i. The equipment list was closer to the 535i with 18-inch wheels, an electric glass roof, quad-zone air-conditioning and the heads-up display.

In March 2011 came the most sensible variant of the line-up, the 520d. At the time, it was the most affordable F10 and although at first glance the kit count might reflect that, in the long run it’d probably worked out for the best.

Here, the oil burner lost the Integral Active Steering and quad-zone climate control over the 523i that it slotted below.

Every single one of them had the fantastic ZF 8-speed automatic sending power to the rear wheels although the 535i had a version referred to as an 8-speed sports automatic with M gearshift logic. Considering that the 535i had the same amount of torque as the M3 of the time, it needed all the help it could get in managing it.

Come October 2013, the facelifted F10 was dropped with a new family of petrol engines and some streamlining to the line-up that now comprised the 520i, 520d and 528i M Sport.

Some of the upgrades comprised adaptive LED headlights and a digital instrument cluster while the ZF 8-speed now allowed coasting if you lifted off the throttle.

The 520d got dual-zone air-conditioning but no paddle shifters whereas the new 520i received a sports steering wheel, paddle shifters, quad-zone air-conditioning with rear controls and keyless entry.

Now the flagship of the range, the 528i M Sport got the usual M Sport black headliner, 18-inch M Sport wheels, an M Sport steering with paddle shifters and the heads-up display.

The IAS was completely dropped from the line-up which would probably work out for the better in the long run.

Following in the footsteps of the IAS was the silky smooth, natural-aspirated straight-6 engines in the petrol variants. In its place, the new N20 inline-4 turbo mills that would prove to be a headache down the road as we’ll explore later in the article.

The 520d soldiered on with the N47D mill before the new B47D engine made its way here in September 2014. Power and torque climbed as expected courtesy of some new features such as an aluminium crankcase with thermally joined cylinder liners for reduced friction, integrated balancer shafts, a variable intake geometry turbocharger and an updated 2,000 bar common-rail direct-injection system.

An easy way to tell the diesels apart is from the TwinPower Turbo wordings on the engine cover.

Market prices for the F10

As we said, depreciation is a wonderful thing… unless you’re the first owner of a BMW or any other premium car that plies its trade in the vicinity of the pricing.

That, combined with the age of the F10, makes for a very tempting ownership prospective if you’re always had your eye on an executive sedan.

Being the runt of the litter, the 520i and the 523i pave the way as the most affordable variants. They both start around the RM 52k mark. However, the 523i tops out at about RM 78k due to its short run and the lack of a facelift trims while the 520i can go all the way up to RM 150k for last year models.

Next up would be the 528i that ranges from RM 55k and climbs up to RM 170k.

The fire-breathing 535i was also limited to a short production run and with its then-new pricing very much not in its favour, the market is unsurprisingly not flooded with options. All that though means a very tempting price range between RM 70k to RM 85k if you’re ever considering one.

Last, but certainly not the least by any means, is the 520d. You’ll find options ranging from RM 60k all the way up to RM 100k.

Of course, the huge depth in pricing for certain variants depends on the year as the newer ones would still very much be eligible for a longer loan tenure if you’re going down that route.

Which variant should I go for?

This is a little tricky to navigate seeing the large number of variants over its duration here and the unfavourable combination of having the desirable equipment in the facelift not paired with the problem-free engines from the pre-facelift.

The new N20 turbocharged inline-4 in the facelifts aren’t exactly paragons of reliability. We’ll get into depth on this in the next section below.

Furthermore, although not something that fails often, given the age of these cars the IAS could just be something that might lead to problems down the road. In this instance, the facelifted models made do with out it and not having is just one less issue to worry as the car gets older.

Therefore, the best bet if you’re going to spring for an F10 is the facelifted 520d. It’s the best combination of all the features and power train. You’ll get the newer, improved B47D engine, digital instrument cluster, LED headlights and no IAS that in our opinion is unnecessary.

Alternatively, if you’re not a fan of diesels, our advice is to go big or go home with the 535i. The N55 engine is a sublime piece of engineering with the sonorous straight-6 sound synonymous with Bimmers and turbo power to boot.

Common problems with the F10

Now we get down and dirty with what’s also become synonymous with Bimmers; problems. And believe us, the N20 engine in the facelifted petrol F10s is notorious for it and even includes a class-action lawsuit in the USA.

Early models of the N20s were plagued with timing chain issues that stemmed from faulty internal plastic timing chain guides. The culprit was identified as a defective polycarbonate composition in the manufacturing process for the guide.

Needless to say, deterioration of the guides will cause the timing chain to slacken and jump teeth on the upper cam shaft sprocket which will eventually lead to catastrophic damage to the engine as the timing runs.

It’s fair to note that this issue typically affects North American models and a technical update in early-2015 reportedly solved the issue. Still, we recommend having the timing chain inspected if you’re getting a variant powered by the N20 engine pre-2015.

Symptoms of the N20’s timing chain imminent failure are a distinct, loud whining noise from the engine, significant scoring on the chain and a lot of free play or slack in the chain. An easy way to conduct a visual inspection of the chain can be done by peering through the oil cap.

Apart from the timing chain, the N20 also suffers from a leaking valve cover and valve cover gasket. The use of a plastic composite will cause it to become brittle and begin cracking with age. Nonetheless, this is something that could affect any engine due to the heat cycling nature causing thermal expansion with time and mileage.

Having your mechanic carry out a visual check on the engine when you send it in for a service is a safe way of identifying leaks early on and rectifying them.

Overall, oil leaks on the N20 appear to be more common and you can expect to spend approximately RM 1,500; depending on the severity as it could get rather labour intensive.

Similarly, issues of a leaking oil filter housing gasket on the N20 have been documented as well for reasons similar to the valve cover gasket. Best way to inspect it is during your routine oil change but bear in mind replacing this is much easier on the wallet than the above oil leaks.

Common issues that aren’t just restricted to the N20 include the infamous failing wheel speed sensor that will make itself known with a “driving stabilization failure” prompt on the dash and will cause systems such as ABS and stability control to not function as fully intended. Replacing this ranges between RM 300 - RM 400.

While we did recommend the 520d, we specifically went for the facelifted one with the B47D as the earlier N47D engine is prone to developing issues with its timing chain sprocket. Addressing this will set you back in the region of RM 2,500 as it’ll require replacing the oil pump as well.

Browse some F10 forums and you’ll surely come across the “yellow grommet of doom.” This refers to the yellow grommet on the firewall that could harden over time and cause rainwater to leak onto the cabin floor. Expect to shell out up to RM 650 to have the offending piece replaced.

Lastly, the F10 isn’t immune to its materials not withstanding the tropical heat of our shores. Like the F30, the inside door handle tends to melt and a replacement is in the range of RM 550.

In terms of scheduled maintenance, the F10 requires an oil change every 10,000 km that should cost in the region of RM 450 to RM 500. The ATF is a little higher at RM 1,000 or so and should be done every 80,000 km or even less if the wallet concurs.

Before you do put pen to paper or thumbprint to scanner, get the F10 you’re looking at inspected for an overall health check by a professional workshop such as Munich Precision. They provide that inspection service for an extremely reasonable RM 192 so please don’t skip that to save a few Ringgit.

Conclusion

At the time, the F10 had some large shoes to fill design wise. Since then though, it’s proving to be quite the styling exercise in being timeless.

Some might argue that it doesn’t carry the predatory handling DNA like its successor, the G30, but it’s lightyears ahead in terms of comfort yet doesn’t do so at the complete extent of dynamic handling.

Taking all that into consideration, at this point in time, the F10 makes for a well-rounded choice to leap into the world of executive car ownership.

If you do decide to make that jump, you can find some great deals on pre-owned BMWs at Carsome here. Remember that all cars purchased from Carsome comes with a 5-day money-back guarantee.