BMW 528i Gets Turbo Four For 2012, Australian Debut Unclear

BMW's entry-level offering for the petrol-powered 5 Series line-up, the 528i, has dropped a pair of cylinders for 2012.

For the new model year, the updated 528i waves goodbye to its six-cylinder engine in favour of BMW's turbocharged N20 four-cylinder unit. Power is down from 190kW to 180kW, but torque climbs from 310 to 350Nm.

Fans will recognise this engine from the international X1 line-up and, more recently, the Z4 sDrive28i. While the Z4 enjoys a 0-100km/h time of 5.7 seconds, the larger 528i gets there in 6.3 seconds - still a hair quicker than the six-cylinder's 6.7 seconds.

Fuel consumption is the big winner here however, dropping from 8.0 l/100km for the current engine, to 6.5 litres when fitted with BMW's 8-speed steptronic automatic transmission.

Australia

Australian dates and pricing for this updated 528i have not been revealed. However, like the Z4 sDrive28i, we can likely expect the big sedan's sub-7.0 l/100km fuel consumption to sweeten the deal for shoppers.