Enlarge / The eighth-generation 5 Series has the least-outrageous styling we’ve seen from BMW in some time. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

COMO, ITALY—BMW has earned a reputation for challenging car designs. It’s not a new thing, either. People mocked the Z1’s disappearing doors. The Z3 coupe’s “clown shoe” nickname was not at all affectionate. And few could find a kind word about the infamous “Bangle butt” on the fourth-gen 7 Series. But it doesn’t take those kinds of risks with every model, particularly not the latest 5 Series, which now includes a fully electric i5.

The 5 Series is BMW’s midsize sedan, and until the advent of the luxury SUV—a category that BMW basically invented—it was the company’s bread and butter. There’s a new 5 Series out this October, the eighth generation to bear the nameplate. Like other recent BMWs, it uses the manufacturer’s latest flexible architecture that supports battery-electric, plug-in hybrid, and conventional powertrains, something we’ve seen to good effect with the 4 Series and particularly with last year’s 7 Series and i7.

Now try to picture it wearing a taxi livery or perhaps a police version. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

The sedan is not dead

“We’re particularly happy with how it turned out proportion-wise. I think it is a long, elegant, sporty sedan, and that, for me, is the essence of any BMW anyway. And the 5 series, of course, is the core of the brand in many, many markets,” said Adrian van Hooydonk, design director at BMW Group.