BMW 5 Series E34

The E34 is the BMW 5 Series generation our specification records cover for US model years 1989–1995. Across that run EPA certified 42 versions of it for sale in America, under 6 trim names. It was sold as a sedan and Touring.

Dimensions are the figures the panel above does not carry. The E34 measures 185.8 in · 4,719 mm long, sits on a wheelbase of 108.7 in · 2,761 mm and weighs 3,395 lb · 1,540 kg to 3,880 lb · 1,760 kg. Length and wheelbase come from Transport Canada, which measures every vehicle sold in North America; curb weight from the same source.

The generation did not stand still: the best combined economy improved from 18 mpg to 20 mpg. An E34 from the first model year and one from the last are not the same proposition, which is worth remembering when a listing gives only the chassis code.

Every version we hold under this code is rear-wheel drive. That matters on the used market more than it looks: which axles are driven changes the weight, the service list and the price, and the badge does not always say which you are looking at.

Gaps are left as gaps. We do not hold curb weight for 5 of the 42 and horsepower for any of them, because Transport Canada does not publish a weight for every model and EPA began recording certified output usefully only in the late 1990s. A dash on this site means the figure is not in a source we can name, never that it is roughly the same as the row above.