BMW 5 Series Receives Five Stars in New More Stringent Crash Test

Press Release: The all-new BMW 5 Series was one of only two vehicles to receive an overall five-star rating in the first crash tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under the new, more stringent New Car Assessment Program (NCAP).

New criteria for the NCAP rating system include: more stringent side-impact tests, use of crash-test dummies of varying size (now also simulating a small adult female as well as a medium-size adult male), collection of more data, introduction of a single overall rating score and the highlighting of high-tech crash avoidance systems like electronic stability control, lane departure warning and forward collision warning.

“The performance of the new 5 Series in these tough new tests reflects BMW’s long-held belief in a holistic approach to vehicle safety that places equal emphasis on active and passive safety,” said Jim O’Donnell, President of BMW of North America. “That’s why we were the first to introduce the Head Protection System in 1997 and why we made Dynamic Stability Control, our electronic stability control system, standard on every BMW sold in the US beginning with the 2000 model year.”

The all-new 2011 BMW 5 Series is available with Lane Departure Warning, Blind Spot Detection, and Active Cruise Control with a Stop & Go feature. It is also available with Night Vision with Pedestrian Detection, a BMW first.

Every 2011 BMW 5 Series is equipped with BMW Assist which includes an enhanced Automatic Collision Notification system. This system, developed jointly with the William Lehman Trauma Center, not only contacts the emergency call center automatically in the event of a collision, but will also transmit data that will alert emergency responders to the probability of severe injury in order to help them better prepare.

Another important safety feature for drivers in colder climates is the availability of BMW’s xDrive all-wheel drive, which is now available for the 535i and 550i Sedans as well as the 535i and 550i Gran Turismo.