Bye-Bye Bimmer; Bidding auf Wiedersehen to our long-term 5 Series.(vehicle from BMW AG)(Product/service evaluation)

Byline: Natalie Neff

How quickly a year passes from behind the wheel of a 325-horse V8-powered BMW 545i. And how pleasurably.

A scan of the logbook reveals nary a complaint regarding the BMW's performance, from a power, ride and handling standpoint. And even if a couple of folks found the active steering a bit disconcerting at first, most grew to enjoy it.

"I've really started to like this active steering, at least on the street,'' commented one staffer. "That said, I have a hunch I might find it a little unpredictable on a racetrack, and sometimes it catches me out when driving a corner with enthusiasm. But after a couple of days in the car, I adjust to its responses and find it quite useful.''

And while the kvetching about the car's Bangled styling and overthunk iDrive slowed near the end of the BMW's tenure in our fleet, it never ceased. As one editor explained: "I never had a hard time figuring [iDrive] out, but a lot of people have a problem accepting iDrive as better than conventional controls. Do I know how to use it? Yes. Did it take me long to figure out? No. Does it still annoy me? Yes. And that's the problem. It continues to ring as technology for the sake of technology. Not the right reason to introduce this kind of system.''

As for the styling, we'll just leave it at this: "I look forward to its next facelift. I dare not say butt-lift, it has too much of that already.''

We found the few problems that cropped up during the year easily rectified. Door ...