Kia says the brand’s K5 GT family sedan is both faster and better handling than the BMW 530i and can prove it through independent testing.
Kia went and had AMCI Testing, the independent automotive testing firm, to pit the K5 GT against the BMW 530i in acceleration and cornering testing. Kia documented it all in a video just under a minute long.
They’re pretty evenly matched. The K5 GT is actually more powerful and on paper reads like an enthusiast special. There’s a 2.5-liter turbocharged I4 under the hood making 290 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of torque paired with an eight-speed dual clutch transmission and sport-tuned suspension. Meanwhile the 530i makes less power and torque (255 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque) from its turbocharged 2.0-liter I4 paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. The biggest difference between the two is the fact that the 5 Series is rear-wheel drive while the K5 GT is front-wheel drive (which sucks because you can get the K5 with all-wheel drive just not with the turbocharged engine.)
In acceleration testing, it was damn near a dead heat. The K5 GT is .1 second faster to 60 mph than the 530i, hitting the mark in 5.4 seconds vs 5.5 for the BMW. Cornering was also close. The K5 GT pulled 0.93 gs on the skidpad vs the 530i’s 0.90. And despite how short the video is, you can catch a glimpse of the 530i understeering.
This isn’t the first time Kia has done something like this. When the K5 GT initially debuted for 2021, the brand had another AMCI test where it went up against the BMW 330i where it also out accelerated and out handled the 3 Series. So there you have it. Documented proof that Kia — despite how you feel about the brand — makes a legit sports sedan that costs thousands less than what you could get from the Germans. It just sucks you have to deal with Kia horrible dealers to get one.