FEATURE

CHARTS

SPECIFICATIONS D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 2 c A r A N D D r I V e r . c O m

Steering EffortConfirming our editors’ subjective Linearity judgments (top), this plot shows that the effort required to steer the BMW 528i xDrive rises in a straight line while the 535i xDrive’s steering torque increases by a factor of two before leveling off and then dropping slightly as lateral acceleration nears the tires’ adhesion limit.

On-Center BehaviorDuring left-then-right maneuvering at various speeds and cornering rates, the rise in steering torque immediately off-center is sharper in the 535i xDrive, yielding a tighter and better-connected feeling. Hydraulic steering’s more consistent traces also confirm the higher subjective rating it earned in the On-Center Feedback category.

Steering ResponseThanks to its quicker steering ratio and less heavily loaded front tires, a given steering-wheel input delivers more lateral acceleration in the 528i xDrive. At low cornering rates, there’s little difference, but by 0.7 g, the 535i xDrive requires a significant 18 degrees of additional steering lock compared with the lighter car.

0.00.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4

LATERAL ACCELERATION - g

STEE

RING

-WHE

EL T

ORQU

E - N

m

0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3

STEE

RING

-WHE

EL A

NGLE

- de

gree

s

LATERAL ACCELERATION - g0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

0

10

20

30

40

60

50

70

80

C/D Editors Take the EPS Challenge Our steering committee rated the BMW 5-series’s electric power steering superior to its hydraulic assist in seven out of ten subjective categories.

ON-CENTER SENSITIVITY

LINEARITY(OF EFFORT CHANGE)

QUICKNESS(RATIO,

RESPONSE)PRECISION

INITIAL (JUST OFF-CENTER)

ON-CENTER

MIDDLE OF MANEUVER

MIDDLE OF MANEUVER

AT CORNERING EXTREMES

AT CORNERING EXTREMES

EFFORT FEEDBACK

38

36

40

37

42

34

37

34

40

34

41

37

43

35

36

40

35

35

31

31

528i xDrive(EPS)

535i xDrive(HPS)

0-0.25 0.25-0.50 0.50-0.75 0.75-1.00-5.0

-2.5

2.5

5.0

0

1.00

CORNERING g

TORQ

UE -

Nm

30 MPH, 0.4 g

0-0.25 0.25-0.50 0.50-0.75 0.75-1.00-5.0

-2.5

2.5

5.0

0

1.00

CORNERING g

TORQ

UE -

Nm

75 MPH, 0.2 g

0-0.25 0.25-0.50 0.50-0.75 0.75-1.00-5.0

-2.5

2.5

5.0

0

1.00

CORNERING g

TORQ

UE -

Nm

30 MPH, 0.4 g

0-0.25 0.25-0.50 0.50-0.75 0.75-1.00-5.0

-2.5

2.5

5.0

0

1.00

CORNERING g

TORQ

UE -

Nm

75 MPH, 0.2 g

COLOR KEY:

528i xDrive (EPS) 535i xDrive (HPS)

S c O r e S A r e O U T O F A m A X I m U m 5 5 P O I N T S .

BMW 535i xDrive

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedanBASE PRICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55,695AS TESTED PRICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $69,695ENGINE TYPE: turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve inline-6, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection DISPLACEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . 182 cu in, 2979 ccPOWER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 hp @ 6250 rpmTORQUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 lb-ft @ 1200 rpmTRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic with manual shifting modeSTEERING: rack-and-pinion with hydraulic power assist, 3.0 turns lock-to-lockSTEERING RATIO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.9:1CURB WEIGHT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4212 lbDISTRIBUTION . . . . . . . . . . F: 52.0% R: 48.0%TIRES: Goodyear Eagle LS2 RunOnFlat, 245/40R-19 98V M+S

BMW 528i xDrive

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedanBASE PRICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $49,875AS TESTED PRICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $61,125ENGINE TYPE: turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection DISPLACEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 cu in, 1997 ccPOWER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 hp @ 5000 rpmTORQUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 lb-ft @ 1250 rpmTRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic with manual shifting modeSTEERING: rack-and-pinion with electric power assist, 3.0 turns lock-to-lockSTEERING RATIO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.1:1CURB WEIGHT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4069 lbDISTRIBUTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . F: 50.3% R: 49.7%TIRES: Goodyear Eagle LS2 RunOnFlat, 245/45R-18 100V M+S