The BMW E34 is the third generation of the BMW 5 Series, which was produced from 2 November 1987, until 1996. Initially launched as a saloon in January 1988, the E34 also saw a "Touring" station wagon (estate) body style added in September 1992, a first for the 5 Series. BMW replaced the E34 with the E39 5 Series in December 1995, although E34 Touring models remained in production until June 1996.

The E34 generation marked the first time all-wheel drive was incorporated into the 5 Series with the 525iX, and the first V8 engine to be used in a 5 Series. The E34 also saw the introduction of stability control (ASC), traction control (ASC+T), a 6-speed manual transmission and adjustable damping (EDC) to the 5 Series range.

There was an unusually large range of engines fitted over its lifetime as nine different engine families were used. These consisted of straight-four, straight-six and V8 engines.

The E34 M5 is powered by the S38 straight-six engine and was produced in saloon and wagon body styles.

Development and launch Development ran from July 1981 to early 1987, with the initial design proposal penned by Ercole Spada in 1982. Under the guidance of chief designer Claus Luthe, BMW based much of the design on the E32 7 Series. Following Spada's departure from BMW and styling approval in 1983, J Mays finalized the design for production in mid-1985. Special attention was paid to aerodynamics, with the E34 basic saloon having a drag coefficient of 0.30.

Series production began in November 1987. In December 1987, the E34 saloon was unveiled to global press.

Body styles Saloon models have a length of , a width of and a height of . Wagon models have a length of and a height of . All models have a wheelbase of .

Engines Official output figures are as follows:

Petrol

Model Years Engine PowerTorque518i 1989–1994 M40B18 inline-4 at 5,500 rpm at 4,250 rpm 1994–1996 M43B18 inline-4 at 5,500 rpm at 3,900 rpm520i / 520iS 1988–1990 M20B20 inline-6 at 6,000 rpm at 4,300 rpm 1989–1992 M50B20 inline-6 at 6,000 rpm at 4,700 rpm 1992–1996 M50B20TÜ inline-6 at 5,900 rpm at 4,200 rpm525i 1988–1991 M20B25 inline-6 at 5,800 rpm at 4,300 rpm 1991–1992 M50B25 inline-6 at 6,000 rpm at 4,700 rpm 1992–1996 M50B25TÜ inline-6 at 5,900 rpm at 4,200 rpm530i 1988–1991 M30B30 inline-6 at 5,500 rpm at 4,300 rpm 1992–1996 M60B30 V8 at 5,800 rpm at 4,500 rpm 535i / 535iS 1987–1992 M30B35 inline-6 at 5,700 rpm at 4,000 rpm 540i 1992–1996 M60B40 V8 at 5,800 rpm at 4,500 rpmM5 1988–1992 S38B36 inline-6 at 6,900 rpm at 4,750 rpm 1992–1996 S38B38 inline-6 at 6,900 rpm at 4,750 rpm

Diesel

Model Years Engine Power Torque 524td 1988–1991 M21D24 inline-6 at 4,800 rpm at 2,400 rpm 525td 1993–1996 M51D25 inline-6 at 4,800 rpm at 1,900 rpm 525tds 1991–1996 M51D25 inline-6 at 4,800 rpm at 2,200 rpm

Performance +1994 Saloon Models518i520i525i525ix530i540i525td525tdsTop Speed (mph)*********0-4.0 seconds3.4 seconds2.6 seconds3.0 seconds2.7 seconds2.3 seconds4.2 seconds3.6 seconds0-8.4 seconds6.7 seconds5.8 seconds6.4 seconds5.6 seconds4.7 seconds8.8 seconds7.5 seconds0-12.3/ *13.7 seconds10.6/ *11.7 seconds8.6/ *9.5 seconds9.5/ *10.3 seconds7.7/ *8.8 seconds6.4/ *6.8 seconds12.9/ *13.9 seconds11.0/ *11.6 seconds0-17.2 seconds14.2 seconds11.8 seconds13.0 seconds11.0 seconds9.0 seconds18.2 seconds15.0 secondsStanding Kilometer33.5/ *34.9 seconds31.5/ *32.9 seconds29.2/ *30.3 seconds30.3/ *31.4 seconds28.4/ *29.3 seconds26.3/ *26.8 seconds34.2/ *35.2 seconds32.1/ *33.0 seconds * Automatic Transmission

** Governed (Auto/Manual)

Drivetrain Manual transmissions 5-speed Getrag 260 5-speed Getrag 280 — 3.6 L M5 model only 5-speed ZF S5D 310 — 91-92 US, and European M50 engines 5-speed Getrag 250G - 93-95 US M50 engines. 6-speed Getrag 420G — 540i and 1994-1996 M5 only

Automatic transmissions 4-speed ZF 4HP22 - M20 and M30 engines 4-speed GM 4L30-E (A4S 310R) - M50 engines (US only) 5-speed ZF 5HP18 - M50 and M51 (except US) and 1992-1995 530i (M60B30). 5-speed ZF 5HP30 - 540i

Suspension Front suspension consists of double pivot MacPherson struts, with a replaceable shock absorber cartridge inside a steel strut housing. Control arms and thrust arms control front-to-back and side-to-side movement. Steering on most models is a recirculating ball design, however the all-wheel drive 525iX uses a rack and pinion steering system along with front suspension similar to the E30 3 Series 325iX model. All front suspension components are steel, except that the lower control arms on some models are aluminum.

Rear suspension consists of semi-trailing arms with coil springs integrated in a strut assembly.

Models Petrol-engined The base model, available only in Europe, was the petrol-powered four-cylinder 518i. Only available with a 5-speed manual transmission, a total of 53,248 cars were produced.

The next petrol model up was the six-cylinder 520i, which began production in January 1988. It was initially powered by the BMW M20 single overhead camshaft engine, which was replaced by the BMW M50 double overhead camshaft engine in 1990. The 520i was the second most popular E34 model globally, with 426,971 units produced. The 525i was the most popular E34 model globally with 434,549 units produced. As per the 520i, the 525i initially used the M20 engine, which was replaced by the M50 engine in 1990.

Engine volume and year of manufacture often influenced the type of wiring. This was of great importance for decoding the configuration and the possibility of further retrofitting. Thus, cars can be divided into two types: high and low. Wiring had a big influence to the amount of possible options and functions of a car. There also was update after M50 and M60 introduce.

A rare E34 model is the petrol-powered six-cylinder 525iX, of which only 9,366 cars were produced. The 525iX was the first all-wheel drive 5 Series, and the only all-wheel drive model in the E34 range. It was powered by the BMW M50 engine and was the first 5 Series to use a rack and pinion steering system.

There are two versions of the E34 530i: an inline-six model produced from 1988 to 1990, and a V8 model produced from 1993 to 1995. The earlier model was one of the last applications of the BMW M30 inline-six engine. The V8 version, which replaced the six-cylinder 535i in the lineup, was powered by the new BMW M60 V8 engine and was available with a 5-speed manual or 5-speed automatic transmission. Initially, the V8 models were differentiated from other models by the wide grille; in 1994 the wide grille became available on other models. Between the two versions of the 530i, a total of 57,570 cars were produced.

The highest six-cylinder model (except for the M5) was the 535i. Despite the '535i' model designation and '3.5' casting on the intake manifold, the BMW M30 engine found in the E34 535i actually has a displacement of . There was also a 535i Sport model with M-technic body kit, boot spoiler with brake light, sport seats, M-Tech sports leather steering wheel (M-tech 1 for 1988-1989 cars, M-tech 2 for 1990–1992), M-technic suspension (M-tech springs, stiffer shocks, M-tech 25mm front stabilizer bar, M-tech 18mm rear stabilizer bar), a polished rocker cover and also a limited-slip differential (25% lock) as standard. A total of 97,679 cars were produced, including the Alpina B10 (BiTurbo, 3.5) models. The 535i was replaced by the V8-engined 530i and 540i models in 1993.

In 1993, the 540i model was added to the top of the 5 Series lineup, powered by the BMW M60 V8 engine and available in both Saloon and wagon body styles (the latter not in US). Transmission options were a 6-speed manual or a 5-speed automatic. A total of 26,485 units were produced. Initially, the V8 models were differentiated from other models by the wider grilles. In 1994 the wide grilles became available on other models as well.

Diesel-engined The first diesel model was the 524td, which was introduced in 1988. This model was replaced by the 525tds in 1991, and a lower-specification 525td was introduced in 1993. Only the 525tds model was fitted with an intercooler.

North America In the United States, the E34 model range was launched in October 1988 with the 525i and 535i 6-cylinder models (for the 1989 model year). Over the course of the E34 generation, the 525i Touring, 530i, 530i Touring, 540i and M5 models were sold in the United States. The version of the M5 remained in production until 1993, by which time the version was being produced for other countries.

M5 model

Introduced in September 1988 and produced until August 1995, the E34 M5 was produced in both saloon and station wagon ('Touring') body styles, the latter being the first M5 to be available as a wagon.

The E34 M5 is powered by the BMW S38 inline-six engine, originally with a displacement of and an output of , later upgraded to a engine rated at . This 3.8 litre version of the M5 was first seen by the public at the 1991 Frankfurt Motor Show, where the E34 M5 Touring also saw its debut.

In its last year of production for the M5, the transmission was upgraded from a 5-speed manual to the Getrag 420G 6-speed manual (which was also used by the 540i model).

Special models 518g A model which could run on natural gas (as well as petrol) and was only sold in Germany. The 518g was based on the 518i Touring model and the only transmission available was a 5-speed manual. The engine, also used by the 1995–2000 3 Series Compact 316g model, was a re-tuned version of the BMW M43 four-cylinder engine. When running on natural gas, the engine produced , compared with when running on petrol. It was only produced in 1995 and just 298 units were built.

518iev prototype After unveiling the BMW E1 and E2 concept car electric vehicles in 1992, BMW began a project to show it was possible to make a full-sized electric car, despite the obstacle of the weight of the lead-acid battery technology at the time. The batteries were a lead-acid type and the electric motors used a rotating-field AC electric drive. To assist the electric drivetrain, the 518iev also had a four-cylinder petrol engine and a continuously variable transmission, a configuration similar to the first production hybrid cars produced by other manufacturers several years later. BMW built at least one fully functional E34 prototype, which was tested in the late 1990s by Deutsche Post and others.

540i M-sport / M540i / 540i LE

Because the M5 was discontinued for non-European markets in 1993, the 540i M-Sport model was built in 1995 for the North American market. On top of the regular 540i features, additional features included sports suspension equipped with EDC, bolstered sport seats, servotronic steering, and US-spec M5 brakes. 205 "M-Sport" models were built, 139 of them with the 6-speed manual transmission.

An M540i model was produced for in Canada. It includes the features of the North American 540i M-sport, plus upgraded Euro-spec M5 brakes, 18-inch M-parallel wheels, and various trim pieces. Only 32 of these cars were built, all with a manual transmission.

The 540i LE (i.e. Limited Edition) saloon was sold in Australia (not to be confused with the E34 M5 Limited Edition sold in the UK). The 540i LE included the interior from the M5, "throwing star" M-System II wheels, EDC suspension with self leveling rear, Servotronic power steering, and front air dam. 70 of these 540i LE saloons were produced, all with a manual transmission, each individually numbered using an engraved metal plaque stuck onto the centre console beneath the handbrake lever.

Alpina models

B10 3.0 AllRad