5 SERIES E12

About the 5 Series E12

The E12 was BMW's first 5 Series, launched in 1972, and it created the executive sports sedan category. The M30 inline-six in the 528i made 176 hp, smooth and willing to rev in the way BMW sixes always were. The four-cylinder 520 was the entry point at 115 hp. The M535i arrived near the end of production with 218 hp and signaled what BMW Motorsport could do with a sedan. The body was designed by Marcello Gandini at Bertone, clean and purposeful without being flashy. Independent suspension all around, disc brakes on every corner, a rear-drive chassis that rewarded precise inputs. The E12 was smaller and lighter than anything in its class today. It set the template that every 5 Series since has followed: a car that handles like a sports car and commutes like a luxury sedan.