Redesigning a luxury car is no easy task for any automaker. On the one hand, a redesign must not be too radical and extreme, risking the loss of loyal buyers, many of whom have more conservative tastes. Yet on the other hand, a redesign must not be too evolutionary and restrained, because this too might risk the loss of buyers who find it not different and exciting enough. It’s a fine line to walk and it seems that in every case, the automaker is subject to criticism.
Historically, updates of luxury cars tended to skew far more towards the evolutionary, conservative approach. The last two decades or so, however have seen luxury automakers take more risks with bolder, more extreme redesigns and new models. Some of them, such as the 2002 E65 BMW 7 Series and 2009 Acura TL, faced backlash and criticism from the start.
Other cars, such as the 1998 Lexus GS and 2003 Cadillac CTS, to name a few, were warmly received upon introduction, but simply haven’t stood up the test of time. Conservative approaches, such as the 2006 Infiniti M and 2010 Audi A8, simply look far more outdated than they really are in 2017.
Yet through all the various industry design trends of the past two decades, there is one luxury car that stands out in my mind as the most timeless design that has stood the test of time: the 1997-2003 BMW E39 5 Series.
Yes, I know I may be biased, but this has been a car I’ve been in love with since it debuted twenty years go now, and one that I love just as much if not more today. It’s design was hardly earth-shattering at the time, drawing influence from its big brother E38 7 Series, but there was something about its updated take on the traditional BMW styling cues, sleek but inoffensive lines, and size that was and still is very perfect.
Add in its low belt lines, naturally-aspirated I6 and V8 engine choices, the availability of a 5- and 6-speed manual, and the absence of overly-assisted electric steering, and the E39 would make a great daily driver today, provided you find one that’s been maintained, and you or your mechanic is familiar with their often sensitive control modules.
This isn’t to say that other luxury cars of the past 20 years haven’t aged gracefully, with the 1999 Mercedes-Benz W220 S-Class coming in a close second on my list. If you had to pick a luxury car released within the past two decades that has aged well, what would it be? The E39 or something else? Bonus QOTD: What luxury car of the past twenty years would you say has aged most poorly?
Got roped in here on a old Winnebago Brave link and because I have 2 E-39’s ended up here. I agree on the timeless thing, I work as an Industrial designer and always like the look of these cars. I commute in a ’03 530 sedan I got with 45K on (now has 250) no big repairs, I meticulously maintain it myself. I would call myself an experienced amateur mechanic, (Alfa’s, Internationals, Fords, Toyota, Chrysler, BMW, VW) and was surprised how easy working on the e-39 was, complete cooling system re-build (Rad, Pump, thermo, hoses, tanks sensors) cost 300$ parts and 3.5 hrs of my time. Love the snap-in hoses, o-rings instead of gaskets and goop, etc…I still get over 30MPG on the highway with that 3.0. Have to run windows XP to run the diagnostic software though. It’s funny, a few innovations that I think first appeared on a production US car started on the 03 E-39, those angel eye headlight thingys you see everyone doing now and LED tail lights were stock in 2003. And I agree the Touring wagon was one of the best styled wagons ever, always wanted one, so when my sweeties MB 300 Turbo got over 500KM we found a Black 03 525IT in amazing shape. Definitely like the 3.0 with manual in the sedan more, but hey, maybe some day a swap? Apparently Consumer Reports gave the 03 530i their highest rating ever that year. Recently a kid T-boned the front and I thought it would be a goner given front suspension damage and the age and milage. Got a call from the insurance guy and he said he’d couldn’t believe how good a shape the car was and they ended up repairing it! Mine’s just like the cover photo but with the sunny clime. tint and stuff. Lucked out.