Although I do have to admit to a BMW bias, the BMW 5 Series was love at first drive.  Once behind the wheel of the 523i, we felt its silky, smooth power and the aural pleasure the engine delivered.  Although primarily designed with the busy executive in mind, the 523i handles like a sports car when pushed.

Knowing the 5 Series is a fast becoming a modern classic; BMW didn’t mess with the design.  In fact, it’s actually hard to tell the refreshed 5 Series apart from the old one.  If you look hard enough though, you’ll see several minor changes.  Upfront, the characteristic headlamp features clear-glass technology with chrome surrounds.  The grille has been flushed with the surface of the front air dam and the lower bumper’s now smiling with a touch of aluminum to highlight the wide stance.  An additional contour line’s been added to the side to stretch the look.  At the back, the rear lamps now feature BMW’s trademark horizontal brake lamps.  The changes, though minor in scale, all contribute to make cohesively update the 5 Series.  That said, the rear part of the car’s probably its weakest point especially with the diagonal line that runs down the sides of the trunk lid then along the bottom of the tail lights.

Despite being called a “523i”, a 2.5-liter straight-6 is actually nestled underneath the aluminum hood.  The 190 horsepower and 235 Nm figures aren’t exactly class-leading, but they do represent a healthy improvement from the previous engine of with a similar displacement.  However, the engine is still highly capable.  A short jab of the throttle (the pedal travel’s actually quite long) can send the tachometer needle spiraling upward and before you know it, you’ll be hitting illegal speeds.  And equally surprising is now eerily effortless this power is delivered—there’s a burst of speed when needed, and it rarely shortchanges you during overtaking maneuvers.  And jab the throttle all you want, and the 523i still manages to return 6.8 km/L in city traffic.

While the engine sticks to being traditional BMW, using the 6-speed automatic requires a much more progressive mindset.  Upon inspection, you have to accept this science-fiction styled hunk of metal as your shifter.  Seemingly lifted from a concept car, the new shifter’s easy to use once you get used to it.  It has a button on the top, which puts the car in park.  Push the small button on the side and toggle the shifter up for reverse, or down for drive (lightly for neutral) and you’re on your way.  Slip it to the left for Sport and you can also push it up and down to go through the gears sequentially.  There are no attempts to mechanize the electronic gear shift system, which is just as well.  The new shifter system is linked to an engine management software that delivers 40 percent quicker shifts than before.

We can't blame you...it's indeed hard to tell the revised 5 Series from the old one. A big hint though is the tail lamps which feature the horizontal LED lamp treatment.

Badge and a dual exhaust tip are telltale signs that this is a 6 cylinder 5 Series.