It’s a fair question but the current 5 series Touring is actually longer than, and as wide as, the current X5. The issue isn’t estate versus SUV, it’s the ever increasing size of all cars.
I had a ‘93 525ix back in the day and it remains the best all weather car I have ever owned. Living in rural Suffolk you could take it anywhere in any weather and it got you there with the world class comfort and refinement that the 5 series offered at that time. The BEST bit was that instead of cutting the throttle and/ or modulating the brakes if the computer felt the wheels slipping, the system simply progressively applied the centre and rear limited slip diff clutches until they locked up and you stayed under full power. You could literally catapault the car out of wet bends and roundabouts. Loved the car, did 100k in it and miss it still.
Drove one as a company car all over Central and Eastern Europe in the mid to late 90's, it was brilliant. Company changed to A6 quattros after that, it was such a come down compared to the 525iX.
@@LeoSag-b7p you are incorrect there. The e34 525ix certainly doesn’t have a viscous coupling diff, rather it uses the abs sensors and a computer to control a clutch pack in its center diff. Very sure on that one as I currently own one and have put lots of time and research into the awd system. The earliest versions had a electronicly controlled, hydraulicly actuated rear locking diff. Not a LSD with 25%, a full locking system. This was later replaced by a more sophisticated abs unit that could brake individual wheels.
In the mid 90’s, I worked as a young engineer at a car company and was part of a winter test team in northern Sweden. I was amazed to briefly see a Matt-black e34 touring body perched on top of what looked like a monster-truck chassis cross the main road and disappear. No one else spotted it and I started to think I’d imagined it. Only later did I realise that must have been an early mule for the 1st generation X5’s!.
My E34 525i touring, bought with 140k miles on the clock for £2,750 in 2002 was one of the best cars i ever owned. It took me to Marbella and back using just1/4L of oil, topped out at 140mph and took all our camping gear (and beer) for 3 blokes for 3 weeks. it hold my continental travel record, 11 hours from Barcelona to London in 40+ deg hear with no AC. owned it for 2 years and p'xed it for £1,500 for a SAAB 900 cabrio (the crappy Vauxhall one) disaster 😞
You will never understand this car fully until you drive it in the snow / mud / sand / loose gravel. In the snow is really where these come alive. I have a e30 325ix with the similar viscous awd system as my winter car. It feels and handles almost like a rwd car with the 63/37 back to front torque split and will oversteer a big smile onto your face whenever you ask it to… but also feels unstoppable with a the traction. Brilliant car. I own a modern xdrive car as well and it’s no where near as much fun as the old ones.
A delightful motorcar from a time when cars were still good looking and made perfect sense. BTW, I am personally still hoping that the SUV craze...is still only that, and that it will somehow see an end. Wishful thinking, I know...
I have an estate and an suv. The suv has a bigger boot and is actually shorter. I find it much easier to get along with. Everything is so low on the normal estate.
The reason for this is both car were styled by Giovanni Michelotti. I often wondered having had three Triumph 2000 and 2500 Estates in succession that some years later that led me to buy an 528i E39 Touring.
I wonder if in a weird way this car has led to the Triumph 2000 / 2500 being viewed from the 2020s as more 'BMW' like than they seemed at the time, close to the low point of British Leyland's reputation...
@@notverydeep9726 My very, very first car was a Triumph 2000 - back in the early 1980's (2nd-hand obvs, £300) Chocolate (I can think of a different word) brown, red leather seats (okay, "benches"), auto, hardwood dash, circular warning light display, pull-out/push-in switches that clicked when engaged/disengaged; I've had dozens of cars since - Jags, Beamers, Mercs, Opels, Subarus, Range Rovers, Volvos, to name but a few .... but my Mum's favourite out of all of them is still that Triumph 2000 - and obvs I wish I still had it. 🤷🏻♂️🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
This is very cool. We only got the 325ix in Canada. I'm a car guy and I didn't even know this existed. I had a 2002 525i and with winter tires I never had an issue. Interesting that the e34 had AWD and the e39 didn't.
I’m also in Canada. I had an E34 on snow tires and there were days I felt very unsafe. Don’t know if you’ve ever had a 4x4. When I drive my Subaru in snow, I’m shocked at how capable it is, every time. It might be one of those things that you don’t appreciate until you try it. It makes a big difference. Though snow performance is becoming less important, because it snows less and less every year.
@@lebojay I hear you. Before the e39 was my winter beater, I had two AWD Audi's and an Outback and an X3. In Edmonton the AWD really helps. But I was surprised at how well the 525 did on winter tires. And you could get it sideways if you wanted, which was fun!
Oh, Edmonton. So you definitely know more about driving in snow than I do. (Toronto) I have an Outback now, and before that I had an all-wheel-drive V10 Audi S6. I expected that they would have similar performance in the snow, but the Subaru is much better. That might have more to do with the tires than anything else. Take care, Robert! 🇨🇦
Wide grill e34 is the best looking e34. Bought my e34 15 years ago. We’ve put 130k km on it in that time, normal maintenance until recently when the SLS needed to be refurbished. Great car.
Mercedes had the 4matic 4WD in the W124 as well. As the W124 was the main competitor for the E34, they might wanted to have something similar to show technical competence. And compared, the 4matic consumes even more power. However, living in areas which got piles of snow then, you were still glad to have 4WD. I still remember coming home from work in the late evening with 30 cm of new snow and cruising safely through.
Oh yes, the E34. I had a 525i sedan manual and then a 525tds Touring with automatic back in the 90ties (never needed a 4x4). These cars were the best company cars in my memory, especially the Touring. Nice engines, nice handling, well equiped, nothing to complain.
I guess like a subaru outback this is a car for people like us, whereby we have the landcruisers etc but need a work car that looks good, csn handle snow and our dirt road. For me this bmw symbolises everything that was qood with the german product. Syle, strength, engineering, capability. Another walk down memory lane. Thanks again jack
I’m a new arrival to your channel. I can’t believe I’m only now discovering it! But I’m Very pleased that I have. What a fantastic array of cars! I’ve already bookmarked 19 videos to watch and know that I’ll be picking a lot more, but I need to get ready for work. Thanks, a great channel. 👌🏻
I have a 1991 BMW e34 535i and I love it. Mine looks like brand new and drives the same way. In Australia it is classed as an historic vehicle and even so it has air conditioning, abs brakes, power steering, windows and mirrors. They are lovely quiet cars that are ultra reliable - for a 30+yo car. I don't know if we got 4wd versions here - I haven't seen any - snow and ice are pretty rare down here! Always enjoy your content - anything on old BMW's I love. 👌👌👌
Still driving my Granit-Silber 525i Touring with black interior. While minus the "X", the very car in the video and with the desirable rear wheel drive only. I regularly take it to Switzerland in the winter. With winter tyres, there is no need for X. Was the 4 wheel drive system also a preparation for the X5 perhaps when BMW jumped into the SUV market?
It was sort of good in a different way but the Estate version (T model) of the W124 (S124) was pretty crude in its design. More utilitarian than luxury, unless maybe you got one of the highly specced ones (like an AMG). Also they rust quite a bit. But yeah, agreed that it was the closest thing to it (only thing close to it). These were the days that the Zjermans really were ahead of everybody else. Sadly since then it seems they got worse while everyone else has improved.
I remember these cars brand new, I think you could have a double sunroof or A/C as standard. The front suspension was different and raised higher than standard. Fantastic cars.
I owned a mint 520 touring. Although I was still a smoker, I never used the ashtray because it was never used, and I hate the smell of it in any of my cars. My mom and boyfriend borrowed it once for some days though, and the ashtray was filled with cigarette bums when they returned it. I sold it soon after, but what a great car to drive.
I wish i had a E34, epecialy a touring.. i have a e30 coupe and a e36 touring i LOVE very much! but a e34 have a particular style of drive, what any other bmw dont have.. and I REALY love that haha.
2:45 - "Let's see* if that 4WD has blunted the performance..." 😐 (* with _no_ 2WD E34 525 wagon present, _or_ even recently driven, _or_ measuring equipment, _or_ reference to odometer, _or_ test data, 31 yrs after vehicle was made... )
I didn't know about this car, but as BMW is based around Munich, which is less than an hours drive from the Bavarian Alps, in a part of the world that gets quite a lot of snow even at lower levels, and given what a handful a RWD automatic is, this makes sense if you live in that region or one like it. I have a lovely 1999 E39 in Aspen silver standing outside with a low mileage. It still looks a beauty. Time to recommission it!
Our '92 525i Touring was our all-time favorite car. It wasn't the fastest, the most exciting or the most reliable but it was by far the most competent and safe-feeling vehicle this family has ever been in. It felt like it would last forever but when parts of it started to fail (like the dual sunroof and the self-leveling suspension) the dealer mechanics would admit they weren't sure they could fix it. The GM-sourced automatic transmission had no fill tube, and no way to check what was going on with it until the dreaded: TRANS PROG ERROR message popped up under the speedo. BMW dealers had spare trannys waiting in the parts department for people who loved these cars until they were stuck at the side of the road with them. If there was ever a perfect car in need of a few tweaks to reliability the 525 was it.
Great video. I think it may have been a response to Audi’s success with the Quattro models. BMW would have been reluctant to admit they were chasing Audi. You certainly find some quirky stuff. Very enjoyable.
@@mantassmilg3826 it was for sure...better weight distribution, lesser powerloss, more steering angle, better power split, bigger versatility...what else to name?
@@maxgr7723 how do you know it was lesser powerloss? Versatility what do you mean by that? Thats some vague statments, still i agree about weight distribution. Quattro is much more robust its not even close, much better going offroad or in the snow.
@@mantassmilg3826 lesser powerloss because of how the gearing+setup in regards of connection inside the center(diff/coupler)works. More versatility because the ix system can become anything between 0-100% (lockup rear to front) and such is capable to be turned off at tight corners, high-speed driving(above 130km/h) and aid in various scenarios (like an active esp)...it even can handle 0 traction,something that old torsen couldnt(like wavetrac nowadays advertises, but on the other hand even rarely exists on ice as a surface because even there exists minimalistic friction), it can become an ininstrusive/neutral addition in corner driving with only light lockup(because its center is a variablr friction lockup) that are all scenarios where the quattro is either not controllable and always on or due to torsen, always off...
This would be a great car to stick an S38 3.8 straight six with a whopping turbo, an LSD, Eisenmann ehxaust, a hard as nails clutch, a 6 speed manual gearbox from an E90 330d (mine handles 742 NM at present), Wilwood brakes and Alpina B10 suspension onto....but keep it looking bone stock.
According to the how many left website there are only 2 525i x touring manuals registered for the road in the UK and 4 automatics. Around 60 are SORN though.
Before this model, there was the 325iX that was sold as a two door, four door and wagon. Presumably, the e30 development X program would have been parallel with the introduction of the e34. Here in North America the e46 wagon was sold mostly as an X model with the automatic. Now the much rarer basic rwd sport models are valued.
Owned a late model 2002 and an '83 323i which were great fun to drive, My gut feel was that 90s BMWs were under-powered and over-weight and I switched to a VW golf G60. At that point I moved to the US (sold my beloved Golf G60) and the state of the roads convinced my to buy a Grand-Cherokee for a family car. After the GC, a string of X5s followed (M62, N62, M57) and culminated in owning a Cayenne. So, yeah.....SUV practicality is great but indeed can't hold a candle to a good sedan/station wagon when it comes to handling. Last year I bought a low mileage '14 535d Xdrive from a friend moving abroad, My son uses it for a mid-length college commute and it is a great car from a comfort perspective. Not sure I would call it sporting despite the sport package but still immensely capable. Of late the horrible engine downsizing and (bucktooth grille) designs will not see me going for later models. TBH, BMW's strength were the I6 and V8 engines. Their fours are mostly uninspiring, not to mention the 3s.
I drove a 525ix touring of a close mate just recently. I was very impressed by how good it goes compared by my experience with my e39 530iT both manual 5spd...
Interesting video. I have an SUV, and I often wonder what I could replace it with a similar space, four-wheel drive, and ground clearance while being sporty. Perhaps it would be an M5 CSL Touring if there was such a thing. Or the Pursangue if it had three seats and a real boot.
Back in the day I had an M reg 525i touring. Absolutely loved that car. Sure not that fast, but was great on the motorway. Wish I still had her..... M680 UPP, where are you?????😢
I remember looking at used cars for sale in Sweden. And quite often cars for sale in the northern parts of Sweden, cars from the 90's were 4WD versions of often mundane cars like Mk Ford Mondeo 2.0 4x4. Ford Sierra 2.0 2.8 or 2.9 4WD . Ford Scorpio 2.9 manual 4WD . Some Mercedes. Of course Audi. I bet the 4WD Ford's mentioned weren't seen in many other markets( exception,, Sierra Cossworth 4x4) Quite a few of the new cars sold in "Northland" Sweden in late 80's - 90's were these 4WD versions.
Im relatively sure bmw around that time had a magazine advert saying unlike other manufacturers we don't make off road cars. Implying they made cars with that good grip and handling that they stayed on the road. Oh how times have changed.
The extent to which BMW led on tech and innovation in that era is often overlooked. In era, the E30 and E28 were extraordinarily innovative machines. Both could be had with 4WD and both with a solid M21 diesel. Even without a blower, the 324d was not slow from point to point. The 324td was actually swift. Much is made of the bigger motors in the E28, but the 525 was probably peak 5-Series at the time; certainly fast enough on the public highway and never overburdened, even with 5 occupants and luggage. On the road, despite the extra mass, the 4x4 system made no perceptible difference to performance. In most conditions one was unaware that it was even a 4x4. You still saw E28 estates (usually 525s) lugging heavy loads (and doing so rapidly) well over two decades after registration and with absurd mileages. RWD or 4WD, the 525 was an excellent car, beautifully built. The opening rear glass just made an excellent car even better.
I had a E34 525iX saloon as a company car in the mid 90's. Drove it all over Eastern and Central Europe, it was absolutely brilliant on bad roads in every weather condition. My company changed to Audi A6 quattros after that (C5 series) on the same roads and in the same conditions, it was a front heavy wallowy pig to drive, the much softer suspension prone to bottoming out.
Thanks for this again very interesting and entertaining upload. Having had my driving lessons in a 320i (E30) and firstly owned an old 1602, I finally converted to MB, the cars of which, upto the late 1990's cannot but be considered the best in automotive engineering and quality. When considering this BMW E34 series the best amongst it's contemporaries, where then have they gone, whereas the Mercedes W124 (forerunner of the later E-class models) still makes its regular appearance on the streets ?
Ahhh!! I see now! Ferguson Formula 4WD. I recall the British Army BRIXMIS used to use a Ferguson Formula Opel Senator as their mission car for a time. I think you could also get conversion for the Rover SD1. Can anyone tell me if this was the same conversion for the Ford XR4i 4x4?
Kind regards from Germany and many thanks for your video! I am a hughe e34 fan(have 2 540iAT) and my mate the 525ix...i studied the 525ix system and especially the one up to 08/94was absolutely stunning above mercedes 4matic and audi quattro as it was times ahead of their systems with the computed hydrolocking system...if you'd wanted to compare it to a current system...it would be more to the e83/53 facelift xdrive(the real xdrive not the e46 early e53 system) but with an lsd in the rear...it is quite expensive to maintain if anything fails(parts out of stock etc)...but besides the weight its more an advantage then a draw back...id love to see jayemm driving this car and seeing his opinion too! About slow/fast and power..well there were alpina b10 3.0 allrad versions and the 530ix test Wagon from BMW(all around 230hp)...the real problem is the transfercase...but if youd want to,you could put a modern xdrive in it and run close to any powerfigure(see the crazy 325ix turbo builds)...
It looks like that car is riding quite high. Did BMW raise the suspension on the iX? If so, maybe that's why it feels a bit ponderous. I think the e34 is probably the best looking BMW ever. Having a 4WD model probably made sense for both the German and American markets, and before the advent of electronic stability control was probably the best way to tame the infamous tail happiness that the model was known for.
In the US, we had a 2008 L322 with the 4.4. Not fast, not cheap on fuel. Great vehicle all around. Here the supercharged ones seemed to have a short lifespan. We traded it off before the inevitable air suspension problems came along. At 150k we were probably already on borrowed time. We also had a 2016 L405 TDV6. Great road car, but when we got to 100k the problems with the DEF started, dealer couldn’t fix, Land Rover offered them no help. It would go into limited run time before no restart, so after 2 hard reboots to the computer, we got all the dash lights off and promptly drove it up the street and traded it off. The 5.0 engine is notorious for timing chain tensioner failure, same as Jaguar. Not cheap to fix, and unless you have the complete FSH, and this was done, you are buying a ticking bomb. Those morons at JLR thought they would save a few pennies by eliminating the tangs on the rod bearings so they often spin out and cause catastrophic engine damage. The TDV6 shares the same basic engine design. The dealer doesn’t even have torque specs for the bottom end, just sell new engines. There is no fixing them, I was told. Great designs overall, shame they didn’t have higher build quality, or durability. The only people that can afford to drive them is the first buyer with the warranty. There is a reason they are so cheap on the second hand market…
At the time I remember BMW had an advert campaign to brag about their handling with a car on the road and some feint direction arrows going off the road and the more prominent arrows going round a right bend saying 'We've never made an off-road car'. Might be part of this story.
BMW made 1st SUV - it was the first X5, they came up with the SUV 'name'. They may have been up against the heavy 'family' 4x4 on US market, this is how they came up with the SUV concept later. Similar to Volvo first XC's, but still IMO - BMW was the first ever.
These awd systems ARE RARE [BMW's early experimental awd systems]. I've seen video's of this viscous setup BEAT Audi's famed Quattro. Would have love to have it installed onto my e39 540i 6 speed (e39 never got awd unfort :(.)
The Audi 100 2.8 quattro and later A6 2.8 quattro were direct competitors to the 5 series with 4x4. The Avant versions had more space than the Touring and Audi’s quattro system was leagues ahead of BMW’s comparatively agricultural system.
Bloody hell! My mate had a 525iX in about 2008. It was in Winter too (UK) and we had a dair bit of snow that winter, it was actually really useful! Ended up getting sold as spares or repair on ebay as thr head gasket went and the front struts weren't too well (specific front struts on the AWD cars and very, very expensive).
My uncle bought a good 5 series with the 1.8 at the time. But is was just too slow. He exchanged it for the 2.5 turbo diesel. No regrets on his side. ;) Greetings from the Netherlands
the big question is whay are people now driving their kids to school in a giant X5 rather than these reasonably sized estates?
You couldn't possibly fit a couple of schoolbags and packed lunches in a reasonably sized estate.
It’s a fair question but the current 5 series Touring is actually longer than, and as wide as, the current X5. The issue isn’t estate versus SUV, it’s the ever increasing size of all cars.
Are you smoking crack??@@cockshield
I would've agreed with you a few years ago but now I think everyone should drive a 4x4 due to the shocking state of the roads.
because they like sitting high, but the minvan is "uncool".
I had a ‘93 525ix back in the day and it remains the best all weather car I have ever owned. Living in rural Suffolk you could take it anywhere in any weather and it got you there with the world class comfort and refinement that the 5 series offered at that time.
The BEST bit was that instead of cutting the throttle and/ or modulating the brakes if the computer felt the wheels slipping, the system simply progressively applied the centre and rear limited slip diff clutches until they locked up and you stayed under full power. You could literally catapault the car out of wet bends and roundabouts. Loved the car, did 100k in it and miss it still.
Drove one as a company car all over Central and Eastern Europe in the mid to late 90's, it was brilliant.
Company changed to A6 quattros after that, it was such a come down compared to the 525iX.
Lol. IT Had not any computers or any elctronic in drive system. IT was Simple viscous coupling
325ix wagon is nice
@@LeoSag-b7p you are incorrect there. The e34 525ix certainly doesn’t have a viscous coupling diff, rather it uses the abs sensors and a computer to control a clutch pack in its center diff. Very sure on that one as I currently own one and have put lots of time and research into the awd system.
The earliest versions had a electronicly controlled, hydraulicly actuated rear locking diff. Not a LSD with 25%, a full locking system. This was later replaced by a more sophisticated abs unit that could brake individual wheels.
In the mid 90’s, I worked as a young engineer at a car company and was part of a winter test team in northern Sweden. I was amazed to briefly see a Matt-black e34 touring body perched on top of what looked like a monster-truck chassis cross the main road and disappear. No one else spotted it and I started to think I’d imagined it. Only later did I realise that must have been an early mule for the 1st generation X5’s!.
You're right! If you google it you should be able to find pictures of the exact car! They 100% used an e34 touring body as an X5 test mule.
My E34 525i touring, bought with 140k miles on the clock for £2,750 in 2002 was one of the best cars i ever owned. It took me to Marbella and back using just1/4L of oil, topped out at 140mph and took all our camping gear (and beer) for 3 blokes for 3 weeks. it hold my continental travel record, 11 hours from Barcelona to London in 40+ deg hear with no AC. owned it for 2 years and p'xed it for £1,500 for a SAAB 900 cabrio (the crappy Vauxhall one) disaster 😞
I live in Bavaria and have seen these cars around. We had a lot of 4WD cars in those days and still have. The W124 300E had the 4Matic version.
You will never understand this car fully until you drive it in the snow / mud / sand / loose gravel. In the snow is really where these come alive. I have a e30 325ix with the similar viscous awd system as my winter car. It feels and handles almost like a rwd car with the 63/37 back to front torque split and will oversteer a big smile onto your face whenever you ask it to… but also feels unstoppable with a the traction. Brilliant car. I own a modern xdrive car as well and it’s no where near as much fun as the old ones.
A delightful motorcar from a time when cars were still good looking and made perfect sense. BTW, I am personally still hoping that the SUV craze...is still only that, and that it will somehow see an end. Wishful thinking, I know...
I have an estate and an suv. The suv has a bigger boot and is actually shorter. I find it much easier to get along with. Everything is so low on the normal estate.
I love the look of these - in many ways it reminds me of an updated Triumph 2500 estate. Lovely.
The reason for this is both car were styled by Giovanni Michelotti.
I often wondered having had three Triumph 2000 and 2500 Estates in succession that some years later that led me to buy an 528i E39 Touring.
I wonder if in a weird way this car has led to the Triumph 2000 / 2500 being viewed from the 2020s as more 'BMW' like than they seemed at the time, close to the low point of British Leyland's reputation...
@@notverydeep9726
My very, very first car was a Triumph 2000
- back in the early 1980's (2nd-hand obvs, £300)
Chocolate (I can think of a different word) brown,
red leather seats (okay, "benches"),
auto, hardwood dash, circular warning light display,
pull-out/push-in switches that clicked when engaged/disengaged;
I've had dozens of cars since
- Jags, Beamers, Mercs, Opels, Subarus, Range Rovers, Volvos, to name but a few
.... but my Mum's favourite out of all of them is still that Triumph 2000
- and obvs I wish I still had it.
🤷🏻♂️🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Had a 535 Sport E34 and followed up with an E34 M5. Brilliant car and much better than my 535.
I had an E34 535 and enjoyed it very very much. Always pined for the M5.
This is very cool. We only got the 325ix in Canada. I'm a car guy and I didn't even know this existed. I had a 2002 525i and with winter tires I never had an issue. Interesting that the e34 had AWD and the e39 didn't.
I’m also in Canada. I had an E34 on snow tires and there were days I felt very unsafe.
Don’t know if you’ve ever had a 4x4. When I drive my Subaru in snow, I’m shocked at how capable it is, every time. It might be one of those things that you don’t appreciate until you try it. It makes a big difference.
Though snow performance is becoming less important, because it snows less and less every year.
@@lebojay I hear you. Before the e39 was my winter beater, I had two AWD Audi's and an Outback and an X3. In Edmonton the AWD really helps. But I was surprised at how well the 525 did on winter tires. And you could get it sideways if you wanted, which was fun!
Oh, Edmonton. So you definitely know more about driving in snow than I do. (Toronto)
I have an Outback now, and before that I had an all-wheel-drive V10 Audi S6. I expected that they would have similar performance in the snow, but the Subaru is much better. That might have more to do with the tires than anything else.
Take care, Robert! 🇨🇦
Still a classy looking car. Had the fortune to drive my late father's 525i saloon in my late teens/early 20's, those orange lit dials had me hooked 😂
4-wheel drive along with 4ws was a big thing in the late 80-90's. Sierra 4x4 etc.
I did 250,000 miles in mine.
Wide grill e34 is the best looking e34.
Bought my e34 15 years ago. We’ve put 130k km on it in that time, normal maintenance until recently when the SLS needed to be refurbished.
Great car.
Mercedes had the 4matic 4WD in the W124 as well. As the W124 was the main competitor for the E34, they might wanted to have something similar to show technical competence. And compared, the 4matic consumes even more power. However, living in areas which got piles of snow then, you were still glad to have 4WD. I still remember coming home from work in the late evening with 30 cm of new snow and cruising safely through.
I owned a 525iT back in the mid 2000's, it was a great car with a double opening sun roof. Very practical and fun car.
Oh yes, the E34. I had a 525i sedan manual and then a 525tds Touring with automatic back in the 90ties (never needed a 4x4). These cars were the best company cars in my memory, especially the Touring. Nice engines, nice handling, well equiped, nothing to complain.
I have an ix manual saloon, ive had 5 e34s now and i love it, compared to the steering box it feels way more responsive.
I guess like a subaru outback this is a car for people like us, whereby we have the landcruisers etc but need a work car that looks good, csn handle snow and our dirt road. For me this bmw symbolises everything that was qood with the german product. Syle, strength, engineering, capability. Another walk down memory lane. Thanks again jack
Thumbs up from a Subaru Outback owner. 😃
Got two E34s with the M20 engine, great cars, especially the early models with less electric gimmicks, solid build quality.
I’m a new arrival to your channel. I can’t believe I’m only now discovering it! But I’m Very pleased that I have. What a fantastic array of cars! I’ve already bookmarked 19 videos to watch and know that I’ll be picking a lot more, but I need to get ready for work. Thanks, a great channel. 👌🏻
That’s amazing, thanks so much Aled!!
The W124 estate had 7 seats & the 6 cylinder versions were lovely...I would have another in a bl8nk of an eye.
I have a 1991 BMW e34 535i and I love it. Mine looks like brand new and drives the same way.
In Australia it is classed as an historic vehicle and even so it has air conditioning, abs brakes, power steering, windows and mirrors.
They are lovely quiet cars that are ultra reliable - for a 30+yo car.
I don't know if we got 4wd versions here - I haven't seen any - snow and ice are pretty rare down here!
Always enjoy your content - anything on old BMW's I love. 👌👌👌
I used to own an ix, one of the first that rolled off the line and had been a press car so it was pretty loaded. Great cars in the snow
Still driving my Granit-Silber 525i Touring with black interior. While minus the "X", the very car in the video and with the desirable rear wheel drive only. I regularly take it to Switzerland in the winter. With winter tyres, there is no need for X.
Was the 4 wheel drive system also a preparation for the X5 perhaps when BMW jumped into the SUV market?
I had the saloon in 540i form in Carbon black with the BBS wheels, boot spoiler and telephone aerial on the boot lid. Ah the 90s…
you forgot about the 300te 24v
It was sort of good in a different way but the Estate version (T model) of the W124 (S124) was pretty crude in its design. More utilitarian than luxury, unless maybe you got one of the highly specced ones (like an AMG). Also they rust quite a bit. But yeah, agreed that it was the closest thing to it (only thing close to it). These were the days that the Zjermans really were ahead of everybody else. Sadly since then it seems they got worse while everyone else has improved.
I remember these cars brand new, I think you could have a double sunroof or A/C as standard. The front suspension was different and raised higher than standard. Fantastic cars.
I owned a mint 520 touring. Although I was still a smoker, I never used the ashtray because it was never used, and I hate the smell of it in any of my cars.
My mom and boyfriend borrowed it once for some days though, and the ashtray was filled with cigarette bums when they returned it. I sold it soon after, but what a great car to drive.
I wish i had a E34, epecialy a touring.. i have a e30 coupe and a e36 touring i LOVE very much! but a e34 have a particular style of drive, what any other bmw dont have.. and I REALY love that haha.
E34 E38 and E39 all gorgeous cars. My favourite is E34. I had an E34 535i in alpine white. Manual. It was amazing... F32 HNY
2:45 - "Let's see* if that 4WD has blunted the performance..."
😐
(* with _no_ 2WD E34 525 wagon present, _or_ even recently driven, _or_ measuring equipment, _or_ reference to odometer, _or_ test data, 31 yrs after vehicle was made... )
I didn't know about this car, but as BMW is based around Munich, which is less than an hours drive from the Bavarian Alps, in a part of the world that gets quite a lot of snow even at lower levels, and given what a handful a RWD automatic is, this makes sense if you live in that region or one like it. I have a lovely 1999 E39 in Aspen silver standing outside with a low mileage. It still looks a beauty. Time to recommission it!
They HAD the best handling car and probably the best built.
Had being the operative word right there. Had.
Our '92 525i Touring was our all-time favorite car. It wasn't the fastest, the most exciting or the most reliable but it was by far the most competent and safe-feeling vehicle this family has ever been in. It felt like it would last forever but when parts of it started to fail (like the dual sunroof and the self-leveling suspension) the dealer mechanics would admit they weren't sure they could fix it. The GM-sourced automatic transmission had no fill tube, and no way to check what was going on with it until the dreaded: TRANS PROG ERROR message popped up under the speedo. BMW dealers had spare trannys waiting in the parts department for people who loved these cars until they were stuck at the side of the road with them.
If there was ever a perfect car in need of a few tweaks to reliability the 525 was it.
Superb. Cars with character and just drive ‘right’. Nostalgic now given the direction of travel.
We had this car as our family car in the late 90s! Great machine.
Great video. I think it may have been a response to Audi’s success with the Quattro models. BMW would have been reluctant to admit they were chasing Audi.
You certainly find some quirky stuff. Very enjoyable.
It was actually the better system compared to the quattro
@@maxgr7723not it wasnt
@@mantassmilg3826 it was for sure...better weight distribution, lesser powerloss, more steering angle, better power split, bigger versatility...what else to name?
@@maxgr7723 how do you know it was lesser powerloss? Versatility what do you mean by that? Thats some vague statments, still i agree about weight distribution. Quattro is much more robust its not even close, much better going offroad or in the snow.
@@mantassmilg3826 lesser powerloss because of how the gearing+setup in regards of connection inside the center(diff/coupler)works. More versatility because the ix system can become anything between 0-100% (lockup rear to front) and such is capable to be turned off at tight corners, high-speed driving(above 130km/h) and aid in various scenarios (like an active esp)...it even can handle 0 traction,something that old torsen couldnt(like wavetrac nowadays advertises, but on the other hand even rarely exists on ice as a surface because even there exists minimalistic friction), it can become an ininstrusive/neutral addition in corner driving with only light lockup(because its center is a variablr friction lockup) that are all scenarios where the quattro is either not controllable and always on or due to torsen, always off...
This would be a great car to stick an S38 3.8 straight six with a whopping turbo, an LSD, Eisenmann ehxaust, a hard as nails clutch, a 6 speed manual gearbox from an E90 330d (mine handles 742 NM at present), Wilwood brakes and Alpina B10 suspension onto....but keep it looking bone stock.
It’s not necessary to start with an expensive S38. You can get lots of power from a cheap M30 or M20 with boost.
USA never got the e34. I live in USA and e30 ix were still very rare. I owned 2 of them. Was a great car. Both had 300k when done
According to the how many left website there are only 2 525i x touring manuals registered for the road in the UK and 4 automatics. Around 60 are SORN though.
Before this model, there was the 325iX that was sold as a two door, four door and wagon. Presumably, the e30 development X program would have been parallel with the introduction of the e34. Here in North America the e46 wagon was sold mostly as an X model with the automatic. Now the much rarer basic rwd sport models are valued.
Owned a late model 2002 and an '83 323i which were great fun to drive, My gut feel was that 90s BMWs were under-powered and over-weight and I switched to a VW golf G60. At that point I moved to the US (sold my beloved Golf G60) and the state of the roads convinced my to buy a Grand-Cherokee for a family car. After the GC, a string of X5s followed (M62, N62, M57) and culminated in owning a Cayenne. So, yeah.....SUV practicality is great but indeed can't hold a candle to a good sedan/station wagon when it comes to handling.
Last year I bought a low mileage '14 535d Xdrive from a friend moving abroad, My son uses it for a mid-length college commute and it is a great car from a comfort perspective. Not sure I would call it sporting despite the sport package but still immensely capable. Of late the horrible engine downsizing and (bucktooth grille) designs will not see me going for later models. TBH, BMW's strength were the I6 and V8 engines. Their fours are mostly uninspiring, not to mention the 3s.
I drove a 525ix touring of a close mate just recently. I was very impressed by how good it goes compared by my experience with my e39 530iT both manual 5spd...
Interesting video. I have an SUV, and I often wonder what I could replace it with a similar space, four-wheel drive, and ground clearance while being sporty. Perhaps it would be an M5 CSL Touring if there was such a thing. Or the Pursangue if it had three seats and a real boot.
It's a special run designed for the swiss families living in Gstaad, but BMW made it global accessible for everyone :)
Back in the day I had an M reg 525i touring. Absolutely loved that car. Sure not that fast, but was great on the motorway. Wish I still had her..... M680 UPP, where are you?????😢
I remember looking at used cars for sale in Sweden. And quite often cars for sale in the northern parts of Sweden, cars from the 90's were 4WD versions of often mundane cars like Mk Ford Mondeo 2.0 4x4. Ford Sierra 2.0 2.8 or 2.9 4WD . Ford Scorpio 2.9 manual 4WD . Some Mercedes. Of course Audi. I bet the 4WD Ford's mentioned weren't seen in many other markets( exception,, Sierra Cossworth 4x4) Quite a few of the new cars sold in "Northland" Sweden in late 80's - 90's were these 4WD versions.
Oh my god... that is my unicorn car right there!!! always just out of my budget but still in my heart!!!
You can buy my ix if you like 😂
Did anyone notice the offside tail marker light had failed on this iX? 🤔
To save weight.
fit a crank from the 528i/328i in it to get some more torque out of the engine , +a modern cat and a remap :) and bob's your uncle
Thank you for this interesting video. I had no idea that any of these big old BMWs were 4WD!
8:06 Yeah, Volvo was the same with their V70 AWD which later became V70 XC. Great chunky looking stance on those.
Im relatively sure bmw around that time had a magazine advert saying unlike other manufacturers we don't make off road cars.
Implying they made cars with that good grip and handling that they stayed on the road.
Oh how times have changed.
The extent to which BMW led on tech and innovation in that era is often overlooked. In era, the E30 and E28 were extraordinarily innovative machines. Both could be had with 4WD and both with a solid M21 diesel. Even without a blower, the 324d was not slow from point to point. The 324td was actually swift.
Much is made of the bigger motors in the E28, but the 525 was probably peak 5-Series at the time; certainly fast enough on the public highway and never overburdened, even with 5 occupants and luggage.
On the road, despite the extra mass, the 4x4 system made no perceptible difference to performance. In most conditions one was unaware that it was even a 4x4.
You still saw E28 estates (usually 525s) lugging heavy loads (and doing so rapidly) well over two decades after registration and with absurd mileages.
RWD or 4WD, the 525 was an excellent car, beautifully built.
The opening rear glass just made an excellent car even better.
I had no idea the iX came to the UK!
Love your channel.
Any Pantera action going on? Would like to see a volvo 123gt on your show. Thank you for all the good content!
I had a E34 525iX saloon as a company car in the mid 90's.
Drove it all over Eastern and Central Europe, it was absolutely brilliant on bad roads in every weather condition. My company changed to Audi A6 quattros after that (C5 series) on the same roads and in the same conditions, it was a front heavy wallowy pig to drive, the much softer suspension prone to bottoming out.
E 34 is a lovely thing jack nice for the owner to have such a rare car as a daily just wondering at 917 does it have an offside rear puncture 😮
Thanks for this again very interesting and entertaining upload. Having had my driving lessons in a 320i (E30) and firstly owned an old 1602, I finally converted to MB, the cars of which, upto the late 1990's cannot but be considered the best in automotive engineering and quality. When considering this BMW E34 series the best amongst it's contemporaries, where then have they gone, whereas the Mercedes W124 (forerunner of the later E-class models) still makes its regular appearance on the streets ?
The perfect shopping trolley that doubles as the school bus.
Far nicer than any modern 5 series.
I was wondering what happened to the Pantera?
The glorious Battle Wagon
Ahhh!! I see now! Ferguson Formula 4WD. I recall the British Army BRIXMIS used to use a Ferguson Formula Opel Senator as their mission car for a time. I think you could also get conversion for the Rover SD1.
Can anyone tell me if this was the same conversion for the Ford XR4i 4x4?
Kind regards from Germany and many thanks for your video! I am a hughe e34 fan(have 2 540iAT) and my mate the 525ix...i studied the 525ix system and especially the one up to 08/94was absolutely stunning above mercedes 4matic and audi quattro as it was times ahead of their systems with the computed hydrolocking system...if you'd wanted to compare it to a current system...it would be more to the e83/53 facelift xdrive(the real xdrive not the e46 early e53 system) but with an lsd in the rear...it is quite expensive to maintain if anything fails(parts out of stock etc)...but besides the weight its more an advantage then a draw back...id love to see jayemm driving this car and seeing his opinion too! About slow/fast and power..well there were alpina b10 3.0 allrad versions and the 530ix test Wagon from BMW(all around 230hp)...the real problem is the transfercase...but if youd want to,you could put a modern xdrive in it and run close to any powerfigure(see the crazy 325ix turbo builds)...
Opel senator B 3.0 24 a no compromise German saloon that’s been almost entirely forgotten…
It looks like that car is riding quite high. Did BMW raise the suspension on the iX? If so, maybe that's why it feels a bit ponderous. I think the e34 is probably the best looking BMW ever. Having a 4WD model probably made sense for both the German and American markets, and before the advent of electronic stability control was probably the best way to tame the infamous tail happiness that the model was known for.
I think it might have had a higher ride height, the Mercedes W124 4-Matic did too.
Great explanation, great images. Thx for these videos.😊
In the US, we had a 2008 L322 with the 4.4. Not fast, not cheap on fuel. Great vehicle all around. Here the supercharged ones seemed to have a short lifespan. We traded it off before the inevitable air suspension problems came along. At 150k we were probably already on borrowed time. We also had a 2016 L405 TDV6. Great road car, but when we got to 100k the problems with the DEF started, dealer couldn’t fix, Land Rover offered them no help. It would go into limited run time before no restart, so after 2 hard reboots to the computer, we got all the dash lights off and promptly drove it up the street and traded it off. The 5.0 engine is notorious for timing chain tensioner failure, same as Jaguar. Not cheap to fix, and unless you have the complete FSH, and this was done, you are buying a ticking bomb. Those morons at JLR thought they would save a few pennies by eliminating the tangs on the rod bearings so they often spin out and cause catastrophic engine damage. The TDV6 shares the same basic engine design. The dealer doesn’t even have torque specs for the bottom end, just sell new engines. There is no fixing them, I was told.
Great designs overall, shame they didn’t have higher build quality, or durability. The only people that can afford to drive them is the first buyer with the warranty. There is a reason they are so cheap on the second hand market…
At the time I remember BMW had an advert campaign to brag about their handling with a car on the road and some feint direction arrows going off the road and the more prominent arrows going round a right bend saying 'We've never made an off-road car'. Might be part of this story.
That was a really interesting video 👍
I remember seeing one about 20 years ago I had to google what ix meant since I had never seen one before
I'm literally after one of these at the moment. Probably the saloon though
Hey If you ever see a Suzuki x90 it would be great to see a video of that. Cheers
BMW made 1st SUV - it was the first X5, they came up with the SUV 'name'. They may have been up against the heavy 'family' 4x4 on US market, this is how they came up with the SUV concept later. Similar to Volvo first XC's, but still IMO - BMW was the first ever.
I ran a 525iX auto through 5 Scottish winters years ago. Equipped with snow tyres, it was brilliant. I sold it to a guy called Mike? 😢
I like these shorter reviews. Keep it coming.
These awd systems ARE RARE [BMW's early experimental awd systems]. I've seen video's of this viscous setup BEAT Audi's famed Quattro. Would have love to have it installed onto my e39 540i 6 speed (e39 never got awd unfort :(.)
TY J🙏🙏
Now this is a bit of me! They've aged so well.
The E34 M5 was much better than all the other E34's.
The Audi 100 2.8 quattro and later A6 2.8 quattro were direct competitors to the 5 series with 4x4. The Avant versions had more space than the Touring and Audi’s quattro system was leagues ahead of BMW’s comparatively agricultural system.
Rip the legend Giorgi tevzadze 🚗
The w124 4matic said hi.
One gotta wonder where BMW failed with the decision to exclude the X-Drive from the E39....
Nice car from the time when BMW built good cars.
Bloody hell! My mate had a 525iX in about 2008. It was in Winter too (UK) and we had a dair bit of snow that winter, it was actually really useful!
Ended up getting sold as spares or repair on ebay as thr head gasket went and the front struts weren't too well (specific front struts on the AWD cars and very, very expensive).
North America Jack, that's why the Xi models existed back then. A lot of states and Canada get real winters with months of icey snowy roads.
But did the US ever get this model? I don't recall ever hearing of one, only the 325ix and we never got the estate/wagon.
When BMW made really nice desirable cars
Good Show mate
Are u joking or wtf brother, M5 put bm on the map,that thing is a thing of beauty!😬😬🤷🤷🙈🙈💀👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👌💪💪💪💯
This car is the same formula for most of BMWs "cars" they sell nowaday. AWD, inline-6, and 4 doors
if you gave this big power it be great
Pretty car. I'd drive it.
Very nice car.
That's the era of BMW I love......BMW what happened to you!
Truly shocking what the modern ones look like.. some blame Cina but Merc also sell there and their cars don’t look like pigs 🐽!!
IX, Better than those on Richese. If you know you know.
My uncle bought a good 5 series with the 1.8 at the time. But is was just too slow. He exchanged it for the 2.5 turbo diesel. No regrets on his side. ;)
Greetings from the Netherlands
Drive a Z4M if you want a BMW with nice steering.