2008 BMW 5 series
large luxury car / 4-door sedan
Moderate overlap front: original test
Rating applies to 2004-10 models
Tested vehicle: 2004 BMW 545i 4-door
The BMW 5 series was redesigned for the 2004 model year.
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Structure and safety cage | |
| Driver injury measures | |
| Head/neck | |
| Chest | |
| Leg/foot, left | |
| Leg/foot, right | |
| Driver restraints and dummy kinematics |
Action shot taken during the frontal offset crash test.
The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well.
Smeared pink and red greasepaint indicates where the dummy's head hit the roof rail during rebound. Head acceleration from this hit was low.
Forces on the lower right leg were high enough to indicate the possibility of injury.
Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side
| Test ID | CEF0409 |
|---|---|
| Footwell intrusion | |
| Footrest (cm) | 3 |
| Left (cm) | 4 |
| Center (cm) | 4 |
| Right (cm) | 5 |
| Brake pedal (cm) | 5 |
| Instrument panel rearward movement | |
| Left (cm) | 1 |
| Right (cm) | 2 |
| Steering column movement | |
| Upward (cm) | -4 |
| Rearward (cm) | 2 |
| A-pillar rearward movement (cm) | 1 |
Driver injury measures
| Test ID | CEF0409 |
|---|---|
| Head | |
| HIC-15 | 258 |
| Peak gs at hard contact | 18 |
| Neck | |
| Tension (kN) | 1.5 |
| Extension bending moment (Nm) | 10 |
| Maximum Nij | 0.33 |
| Chest maximum compression (mm) | 37 |
| Legs | |
| Femur force - left (kN) | 1.1 |
| Femur force - right (kN) | 2.5 |
| Knee displacement - left (mm) | 0 |
| Knee displacement - right (mm) | 0 |
| Maximum tibia index - left | 0.45 |
| Maximum tibia index - right | 0.92 |
| Tibia axial force - left (kN) | 2.1 |
| Tibia axial force - right (kN) | 3.5 |
| Foot acceleration (g) | |
| Left | 64 |
| Right | 56 |
Side: original test
Rating applies to 2008-10 models built after May 2007
Tested vehicle: 2008 BMW 528i 4-door with standard front and rear head tubular airbags and standard front door-mounted torso airbags
The BMW 5 series was redesigned for the 2004 model year. Beginning with 2008 models built after May 2007, modifications were made to the side tubular head protection airbags to improve occupant protection in side-impact crashes (note: information about when a specific vehicle was manufactured is on the certification label typically affixed to the car on or near the driver door). Door trim changes were also made beginning with 2008 model year production. The tested car was manufactured after the modifications had been made.
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Structure and safety cage | |
| Driver injury measures | |
| Head/neck | |
| Torso | |
| Pelvis/leg | |
| Driver head protection | |
| Rear passenger injury measures | |
| Head/neck | |
| Torso | |
| Pelvis/leg | |
| Rear passenger head protection | |
View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.
View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side tubular airbag and damage to the occupant compartment.
Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side airbags.
Smeared red greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.
Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side
| Test ID | CES0720 |
|---|---|
| B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) | -7.5 |
| Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline. | |
Driver injury measures
| Test ID | CES0720 |
|---|---|
| Head HIC-15 | 249 |
| Neck | |
| Tension (kN) | 0.6 |
| Compression (kN) | 0.4 |
| Shoulder | |
| Lateral deflection (mm) | 47 |
| Lateral force (kN) | 1.7 |
| Torso | |
| Maximum deflection (mm) | 50 |
| Average deflection (mm) | 40 |
| Maximum deflection rate (m/s) | 6.90 |
| Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) | 1.43 |
| Pelvis | |
| Iliac force (kN) | 3.1 |
| Acetabulum force (kN) | 2.5 |
| Combined force (kN) | 5.6 |
| Left femur | |
| L-M force (kN) | 0.4 |
| L-M moment (Nm) | 87 |
| A-P moment (Nm) | 59 |
Passenger injury measures
| Test ID | CES0720 |
|---|---|
| Head HIC-15 | 133 |
| Neck | |
| Tension (kN) | 0.0 |
| Compression (kN) | 0.8 |
| Shoulder | |
| Lateral deflection (mm) | 22 |
| Lateral force (kN) | 1.5 |
| Torso | |
| Maximum deflection (mm) | 22 |
| Average deflection (mm) | 16 |
| Maximum deflection rate (m/s) | 2.38 |
| Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) | 0.22 |
| Pelvis | |
| Iliac force (kN) | 0.7 |
| Acetabulum force (kN) | 1.4 |
| Combined force (kN) | 2.0 |
| Left femur | |
| L-M force (kN) | 0.4 |
| L-M moment (Nm) | 79 |
| A-P moment (Nm) | -53 |
Head restraints & seats
Seat type: Comfort seats AHR manufactured after Aug 2007
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Dynamic rating | |
| Seat/head restraint geometry |
| Seat type | Comfort seats AHR manufactured after Aug 2007 |
|---|---|
| Geometry | |
| Backset (mm) | 40 |
| Distance below top of head (mm) | 54 |
| Seat design parameters | |
| Pass/fail | Pass |
| Max T1 acceleration (g) | 10.9 |
| Head contact time (ms) | 49 |
| Force rating | 1 |
| Neck forces | |
| Max neck shear force (N) | 1 |
| Max neck tension (N) | 278 |
Seat type: Standard seats AHR manufactured after Aug 2007
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Dynamic rating | |
| Seat/head restraint geometry |
| Seat type | Standard seats AHR manufactured after Aug 2007 |
|---|---|
| Geometry | |
| Backset (mm) | 65 |
| Distance below top of head (mm) | 34 |
| Seat design parameters | |
| Pass/fail | Pass |
| Max T1 acceleration (g) | 13.5 |
| Head contact time (ms) | 67 |
| Force rating | 1 |
| Neck forces | |
| Max neck shear force (N) | 1 |
| Max neck tension (N) | 218 |
Seat type: Comfort seats AHR manufactured before Sept 2007
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Dynamic rating | |
| Seat/head restraint geometry |
| Seat type | Comfort seats AHR manufactured before Sept 2007 |
|---|---|
| Geometry | |
| Backset (mm) | 60 |
| Distance below top of head (mm) | 16 |
| Seat design parameters | |
| Pass/fail | Pass |
| Max T1 acceleration (g) | 9.9 |
| Head contact time (ms) | 64 |
| Force rating | 2 |
| Neck forces | |
| Max neck shear force (N) | 95 |
| Max neck tension (N) | 761 |
Seat type: Base seats manufactured before Sept 2007
| Overall evaluation | |
|---|---|
| Dynamic rating | |
| Seat/head restraint geometry |
| Seat type | Base seats manufactured before Sept 2007 |
|---|---|
| Geometry | |
| Backset (mm) | 85 |
| Distance below top of head (mm) | 14 |
| Seat design parameters | |
| Pass/fail | Fail |
| Max T1 acceleration (g) | 14.0 |
| Head contact time (ms) | 103 |
| Force rating | 3 |
| Neck forces | |
| Max neck shear force (N) | 230 |
| Max neck tension (N) | 750 |
How the head restraint & seat test is conducted
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.