The latest 530e Sport is currently priced at RM343,800 including GST without insurance and is covered by a five-year warranty with free scheduled service.
It arrives with four colour options of Bluestone Metallic, Mediterranean Blue, Alpine White, and Black Sapphire, while the cabin gets two choices of either Leather Dakota Black or Leather Dakota Cognac.
At roughly 1,700kg (kerb), the plugin hybrid version of the G30 has a wheelbase of 2,947mm and measures 4,943mm-long, 1,867mm-wide and 1,478mm-tall - its new coefficient of drag is now 0.22Cd.
Under the hood lies the 2.0-litre (1,998cc) turbocharged B48B20 four-cylinder petrol engine producing 184hp from 5,000 to 6,500rpm and 290Nm of torque from 1,350 to 4,250rpm.
The engine is further supplemented by a 9.5kWh (33 MJ) lithium-ion battery pack, located under the rear bench (reducing the standard boot size by 120 litres to 420 litres), powering an electric motor that produces 111hp and 250Nm from 0 to 3,170rpm.
This allows the car to sip 2.0 litres of petrol for every 100km and emit just 46g of carbon dioxide per kilometre.
On a full charge and in pure electric mode, the car has a range of up to 48km and can reach up to a top speed of 140kph – the best in its segment.
There are three driving modes of Auto eDrive (combines power of both engine and electric motor - maximum allowed speed of 80kph), Max eDrive (electric power only - maximum allowed speed of 140km/h), and Battery Control (allows driver to manually engage the use of the battery by setting the charge value to be available for pure-electric driving later in the journey).
Alternatively, a BMW i AC Fast Charging Cable (comes with the registration of the ChargeNow Card online) that's compatible for public charging and is capable of achieving up to three times the charging speed compared to the standard charging cable, ensures that owners can connect the car to any public charging station.
An eight-speed automatic gearbox with Steptronic manages power delivery to the rear while the car rolls on 19-inch V-spoke style 635 wheels that wear 245/40 (front) and 275/35 (rear) run flat tyres with Flat Tyre indicator.
The aluminium suspension uses a a double track control arm axle with a separate lower track arm level while the rear uses a five-link axle.
The suspension is influenced by the inclusion of Dynamic Damper Control and Driving Experience Control with Adaptive Mode.
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Dynamic Damper with Adaptive Mode is the fourth of the Driving Experience Control system which includes Comfort, Sport, and Eco Pro.
The Adaptive Mode works alongside the Dynamic Damper Control (DDC) and Navigation System Professional wherein the steering, DDC and Steptronic systems automatically adapt to the current driving style and route ahead.
Externally, the hybridised G30 gets slapped with satinated aluminium accents, black chrome for the dual exhaust tips, high-gloss black accents for the front and rear bumpers, Active Air Stream to improve aerodynamics during high speed cruising and LEDs for the automatic headlights, side lights, front fogs and daytime running lights.
Inside, the Dakota leather-upholstered cabin gets fitted with illuminated 'eDrive' door sills, combination of high-gloss black and Pearl Chrome accents, leather-wrapped sports steering wheel with paddle-shifters, powered sports seats with memory for the front passenger and driver as well as a 12.3-inch high-resolution multifunction colour instrument display with black-panel technology.
For convenience and comfort, the 530e comes with electromechanical parking brake with automatic hold function, automatic wipers, manual (rear side windows) and powered (rear window) sunblinds, keyless-entry with push-start button, quad-zone climate controls, rear air conditioning vents, hands-free boot operation (opening and closing) and Parking Assistant for parallel and perpendicular parking spots.
A 12-speaker HiFi sound system with a wide 10.25-inch colour touchscreen takes care of infotainment options with a 20GB hard drive, on-board computer with Check Control, navigation, 205-watt digital amplifier, Bluetooth connectivity, USB port, Extended Smartphone Connectivity and BMW ConnectedDrive services that includes Intelligent Emergency Call, Teleservices, Concierge Services and eDrive Services.
For safety, there's six airbags, antilock braking system with brake assist, dynamic stability control, dynamic traction control, cornering brake control, dynamic braking lights with flashing function, crash sensor with closing of the windows, glass roof and folding of the exterior mirrors, seat-occupancy detection and a reverse camera.
“The All-New BMW 5 Series now offers eDrive Technology, an innovation taken from the Mobility of the Future - BMW i. More than this, however, is the fact that the All-New BMW 530e Sport also increases our portfolio of premium Plug-In Hybrid vehicles here, enabling us to offer the largest portfolio offering by any automaker in the country and to further demonstrate our commitment to Visionary Mobility in Malaysia,” said BMW Malaysia head of sales Raymond Tan.
New owners of the 530e Sport (including other BMW iPerformance models – 330e M Sport, X5 xDrive 40E and 740Le) will have unlimited, complimentary BMW i AC Fast Charging Cable and one-year access to the ChargeNow mobility services via GreenTech Malaysia's ChargEV platform.
From now to Mar 31 and specially for new owners of the X5 xDrive40e and 740Le xDrive, the new programme by BMW Malaysia offers a complimentary BMW iWallbox Plus, with RFID detection and can be managed and controlled remotely using the BMW smartphone app.
