5-series

The new 2011 BMW 530d has easily passed its first crash test evaluation while using active emergency brake intervention. Like a number of other cars to come to market recently, the 5 Series is available with a radar-based active cruise control system that can use the brake system to manage vehicle speed and keep the car a safe distance from the vehicle in front. Recently these systems have been enhanced with emergency brake intervention that allows full braking force to be applied if crash is imminent - even when the cruise control is not being used.

The famed automotive pot-stirrers at Autocar are at it again. According to two blurbs from the UK publication, BMW's new 5 Series Gran Turismo may spawn at least one less costly, less powerful variant, but a high-performance M version is apparently off the table.

Click above for high-res image gallery of the 2009 BMW 7 Series

The latest iteration of BMW's all-singing, all-dancing plutocrat limo will roll out the door starting at $81,125. That sum will get buyers the 2009 750i (including $825 for destination charges), but those who are looking for a bit more legroom in back will have to pay $85,025 for the 750Li. Production for these models began last month, but don't expect to see them on the forecourts of your local BMW Center until later this spring.

High commodities prices and the unflattering value gap between the Euro and U.S. Dollar are forcing a lot of European automakers to bump their prices here in the States. We told you a few weeks ago that BMW was planning on raising the sticker price on many of its products, and now we're starting to see the extent of the damage. The price changes range from an increase of $600 on a 128i to $1,400 on an M6. The 335i received several MSRP increases, with the sedan going up by $800, the coupe by $1,200, and a raise of $1,300 for the convertible. The 328i sedan, meanwhile, rose $700 to an MSRP of $33,400.

Click above to view a high-res version courtesy of AutoExpress.

According to AutoExpress, the next generation BMW 5-series will be offered as a hatchback, along with its standard sedan and wagon counterparts. The Brit pub supposedly has it on good authority that the new hatch design will be similar to the "TwinDoor" feature offered on the Skoda Superb, which allows the driver to raise either the trunk alone or the rear window and trunk simultaneously. If employed on the new 5-series, storage - with the rear seats folded flat - could approach X5 levels. Expect to see the new 5er launched in 2010.