According to credible sources, more then 320,000 owners of BMW’s with production years between 2004-2006 have been contacted in regards to a possible problem with their front air bags. The malfunction is that the front passenger seat airbag might become disabled therefore not operating at the time of a collision.

The cause of the malfunction is the floormat, which sends signals to the vehicles computer if the seat is occupied. Luckily a sign comes on if the airbag becomes disabled.

The affected vehicles with the airbag malfunction are the following: 2006 BMW 3 Series and 6 Series. 2006 BMW X5 crossovers. 2004 and 2005 Z4 sports cars. Also 2004, 2005 and 2006 BMW 5 Series, 7 Series and X3 crossover.

At this point in time BMW is not aware of any injuries related to this problem.

Recently I’ve had the pleasure of going for a spin in one of these beasts. I must say it was a pleasant surprise from the average A4. It has more pickup, luxury lines and torque then the A4, without the price tag of a 6-Series BMW. I often wonder why Audi entered into this market and weather it will fall into a trap of trying to cater to too many people in its product assortment. I feel that Porsche is doing that first with the Cayenne then with the Panamera concept.

Anyways back to the S5. I kinda wish the one I drove was a 6 speed, as I don’t really like automatics. It has the Quattro system and holds the road very well, but that race factor was just missing from it.

I guess it’s all in the eye of the beholder. The outside lines of the vehicle are well defined and remind me of the Avus from the early 90s. I still have a model replica of it’s polished aluminum body and it’s rims in 1/18^th scale, that later became standard equipment on S8 and B5 S4 models.

I can’t hide it I love the Avus. Here is a pic:

The S5 was nice, and deserves to be part of the S line, but if you want a hardcore racer, go for the R8.

Heres a few pics of just like the one I drove today: