Compare the2024 Genesis G90VS 2024 BMW 5 Series

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Genesis G90 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 Genesis G90 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 G90 and 5 Series have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The G90 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.

The G90 has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The 5 Series doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

The G90 has standard Anti-Whiplash Front Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Anti-Whiplash Front Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The 5 Series doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the G90. But it costs extra on the 5 Series.

Both the G90 and the 5 Series have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The Genesis G90 weighs 458 to 1108 pounds more than the BMW 5 Series. The NHTSA advises that heavier cars are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The Genesis G90 has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned an “Acceptable” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The 5 Series is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2024, though it hasn’t yet been rated in the updated moderate overlap frontal test, a requirement for the “Top Safety Pick Plus” award.

The G90 comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes free 24-hour roadside assistance. The 5 Series’ 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Genesis’ powertrain warranty covers the G90 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than BMW covers the 5 Series. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the 5 Series ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Genesis vehicles are better in initial quality than BMW vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Genesis above average in initial quality. With 22 more problems per 100 vehicles, BMW is rated below average.

The G90 3.5T’s standard 3.5 turbo V6 produces 120 more horsepower (375 vs. 255) and 96 lbs.-ft. more torque (391 vs. 295) than the 530i’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The G90 3.5T e-SC’s standard 3.5 turbo/supercharged V6 hybrid produces 34 more horsepower (409 vs. 375) and 7 lbs.-ft. more torque (405 vs. 398) than the 540i xDrive’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the G90 3.5T e-SC 3.5 turbo/supercharged V6 hybrid is faster than the 530i 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid:

The G90 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 G90’s brake rotors are larger than those on the 5 Series:

For better traction and acceleration, the G90 has larger rear tires than the 5 Series (275/40R20 vs. 245/45R19).

The G90 3.5T’s standard 275/40R20 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 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 G90 3.5T has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 19-inch wheels are standard on the 5 Series.

The G90 3.5T has a standard automatic load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The 5 Series doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the G90’s wheelbase is 7.3 inches longer than on the 5 Series (125.2 inches vs. 117.9 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the G90 is 1.3 inches wider in the front and .2 inches wider in the rear than on the 5 Series.

The G90’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (50.6% to 49.4%) than the 5 Series’ (52.5% to 47.5%). This gives the G90 more stable handling and braking.

For better maneuverability, the G90 3.5T e-SC’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the 5 Series’ (37.1 feet vs. 40.4 feet). The G90 3.5T’s turning circle is .6 feet tighter than the 5 Series xDrive’s (40.1 feet vs. 40.7 feet).

The G90 uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The 5 Series doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the G90 3.5T e-SC is quieter than the 530i xDrive:

The G90 has .3 inches more front headroom, 1 inch more front legroom, .3 inches more rear headroom, .8 inches more rear legroom and 1 inch more rear shoulder room than the 5 Series.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the G90 3.5T e-SC’s rear seats recline. The 5 Series’ rear seats don’t recline.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the G90 has standard extendable sun visors. The 5 Series doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The G90 has standard front air conditioned seats and the G90 3.5T e-SC also has them in the rear. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The 5 Series doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The G90 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.

The G90 has standard massaging front seats. Massaging front seats cost extra on the 5 Series. The G90 3.5T e-SC also has standard massaging rear seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging rear seats aren’t available in the 5 Series.

Both the Genesis G90 and the BMW 5 Series have a standard Qi wireless phone charging system in the front seat. To easily keep personal devices charged in the rear seat, without cables tangling and wearing out, the G90 3.5T e-SC also has a standard wireless charging system.