Compare the2024 Audi S7VS 2024 BMW 5 Series

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi S7 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The BMW 5 Series doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi S7 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW 5 Series doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the S7 and 5 Series have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The S7 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The 5 Series’ child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the S7. But it costs extra on the 5 Series.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the S7 Prestige helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The 5 Series doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the S7 and the 5 Series have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The S7’s 2.9 turbo V6 hybrid produces 189 more horsepower (444 vs. 255) and 147 lbs.-ft. more torque (442 vs. 295) than the 530i’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The S7’s 2.9 turbo V6 hybrid produces 69 more horsepower (444 vs. 375) and 44 lbs.-ft. more torque (442 vs. 398) than the 540i xDrive’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Car and Driver the Audi S7 is faster than the 530i 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid:

The S7 has 3.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the 5 Series (19.3 vs. 15.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

For better stopping power the S7’s brake rotors are larger than those on the 5 Series:

The S7 stops shorter than the 5 Series:

For better traction, the S7 has larger tires than the 5 Series (255/35R21 vs. 245/45R19). The S7’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the 5 Series (255/35R21 vs. 245/40R20).

The S7’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the 5 Series’ standard 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the S7 has standard 21-inch wheels. Smaller 19-inch wheels are standard on the 5 Series.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the S7 is 1.2 inches wider in the front than on the 5 Series.

For better maneuverability, the S7’s turning circle is .4 feet tighter than the 5 Series’ (40 feet vs. 40.4 feet). The S7’s turning circle is .7 feet tighter than the 5 Series xDrive’s (40 feet vs. 40.7 feet).

The S7 is 3.2 inches shorter than the 5 Series, making the S7 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the S7’s rear seats recline. The 5 Series’ rear seats don’t recline.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the S7 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The 5 Series doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The S7 has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The 5 Series doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the S7 has standard extendable sun visors. The 5 Series doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The S7 has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the car heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the 5 Series.