BMW 520 - The way to the top

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BMW 520 - The way to the top

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Created on July 23, 2022

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

3

Bruno von Rotz

37

BMW AG

9

Archiv

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BMW 520 (1980) - almost like a scene from Derrick

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BMW 520 (1980) - with the two-filter six-cylinder engine, the 520 fought mainly against four-cylinder engines

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BMW 520 (1980) - the non-white color suits the 5-series perfectly

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BMW 520 (1980) - ... but also no cornering despiser

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BMW 520 (1980) - sufficiently powerful even for today's traffic

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BMW 520 (1980) - Harry Klein could sit in it, but he doesn't

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BMW 520 (1980) - the car is already being driven up once

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BMW 520 (1980) - a pleasant and comfortable ride

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BMW 520 (1980) - would still be suitable as an everyday car today

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BMW 520 (1980) - with a width of 1.69 meters, really narrow by today's standards

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BMW 520 (1980) - with the classic four-eyed face

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BMW 520 (1980) - compact sedan of the upper middle class

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BMW 520 (1980) - the design was based on the "Garmisch" study

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BMW 520 (1980) - simple design without frippery, led by Paul Bracq

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BMW 520 (1980) - already with the larger rear lights that came into effect with the facelift halfway through the production period

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BMW 520 (1980) - neither pompous nor overly sporty

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BMW 520 (1980) - the steering wheel is adjustable

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BMW 520 (1980) - with the facelift, the 5-series took over the same steering wheel as the 6-series and the 7-series

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BMW 520 (1980) - easy-to-read instruments - fuel level, speedometer, clock and water temperature

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BMW 520 (1980) - gearshift markings instead of rev counter, if you didn't mind the extra cost

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BMW 520 (1980) - three large wheels for ventilation and heating adjustment

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BMW 520 (1980) - Three-wave radio from Blaupunkt

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BMW 520 (1980) - enough space under the hood

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BMW 520 (1980) - 122 DIN horsepower from the two-liter engine

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BMW 520 (1980) - longitudinally mounted in-line six-cylinder engine with 1990 cm3 displacement

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BMW 520 (1980) - large air filter above the Solex carburetor

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BMW 520 (1980) - when the kidney grille was still clear

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BMW 520 (1980) - after the facelift, the hood looked the same for all variants

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BMW 520 (1980) - to prevent it from being stolen

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BMW 2000 (1971) - 100 hp was enough for 168 km/h back then

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BMW 2000 (1971) - the trailer coupling was retrofitted

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BMW 2000 (1971) - four doors and power under the hood - the joy of driving

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BMW Garmisch 2002 ti Bertone (1970) - drawing for the announcement before the premiere

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BMW Garmisch (1970) - Bertone concept car with striking front face - Geneva Motor Show 1970

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BMW Garmisch (1970) - based on the BMW 2002 ti, striking honeycomb louvers on the rear window of the Bertone prototype - Geneva Motor Show 1970

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BMW Garmisch (1970) - Original BMW dashboards with decorative elements reminiscent of radio panels - Geneva Motor Show 1970

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BMW 520 (1972) - important sedan for BMW, design influenced by Gandini/Bertone

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BMW 525 (1973) - with six-cylinder engine

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BMW 525 (1974) - charmingly presented first generation

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BMW 518 (1974) - hardly distinguishable from the more powerful models from the side

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BMW 518 (1974) - introduced as a new basic model

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BMW 518 (1974) - still with the smaller rear lights and the fuel filler flap at the rear

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BMW 520 (1976) - in winter operation while skiing

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BMW 525 (1976) - with aluminum wheels at extra cost

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BMW-Alpina 520i (1973) - performance-optimized model by BMW tuner Alpina - at the 1973 Geneva Motor Show

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BMW 525 (1974) - elegant also in green, E12

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BMW 528i (1976) - E12 series, the first generation of the five-seater

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BMW 528 (1975) - 165 hp and less than 10 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h

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BMW 528 (1977) - refreshed 5-series model with modified rear lights and now side-mounted fuel filler neck - Geneva Motor Show 1977

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BMW 520 (1973) - Advertising - Comfort as a sporting experience

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BMW 520 (1973) - Advertising - Consistency of sporting reason

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BMW 518 (1974) - Advertisement/the-change-up

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BMW 520 (1975) - Advertising - Cause and effect

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BMW 520 (1978) - Advertising - Competitors wanted

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BMW 520 (1978) - Advertising - a new drive to go further

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BMW 520 (1979) - Advertising - No confusion

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BMW 520 (1980) - Advertising - what makes a 5 Series so valuable

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BMW 528i (1981) - top model of the 5-series - more spacious and more economical - IAA 1981

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BMW 520i (1981) - the second generation E28

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BMW 520i (1981) - second generation E28 in the snow

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The BMW 5 Series in the TV series "Derrick"

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Summary

With the BMW 520, the Munich-based car manufacturer presented a modern upper mid-range passenger car almost exactly 50 years ago. Initially equipped exclusively with four-cylinder engines, the famous six-cylinder units were soon added to the engine compartment, making the five-cylinder an extremely comfortable and fast touring sedan, which was also appreciated by Stephan Derrick and Harry Klein. This driving report tells the story of the first Five and shows it in historical and current images.

This article contains the following chapters

Re-thought
Straight lines and no frills
Functional and luxurious
Pretty sporty
Not cheap enough?
Six-cylinder model added
More comfort
10 years
Like Harry once did

Estimated reading time: 10min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Do you remember Inspector Derrick? And his colleague Harry? And the famous phrase: "Harry, will you pull up the car?". And what happened next? Exactly, Harry Klein drove around the corner in his BMW and let Stephan Derrick get in. However, the sentence was "Harry, we need the car, now" and it was only used once. But Harry still drove a car in many episodes of the TV series that appeared between 1974 and 1998, and it was always a BMW, initially the 5-series E12, later the successor model, or the 7-series. And Stephan Derrick couldn't complain about that, because upper mid-range models were certainly not common in the criminal investigation department back then. And the BMW E12 was already doing its job well.

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