The 2017 BMW 5 Series has been teased in a new official video, showing it in undisguised form for the first time ahead of its unveiling next month.

The uncovered car is only partially shown in the video, but the short glimpse shows the new LED tail-light design for the first time.

The lights feature a similar design to those of the latest 3 Series, but they’re housed within a body that looks slightly more muscular than that of its smaller sibling.

Earlier spy shots of the 2017 5 Series have shown what the model will look like in saloon and estate guises. The exterior of both bodystyles, while undoubtedly evolutionary, give the 5 Series a more aggressive demeanour.

We know from our recent drive in a 2017 5 Series prototype in 530d xDrive form (pictured below) that the model is slightly larger than the outgoing car. The increases in length, width and height are small and aimed at increasing rear seat accommodation.

The new car will share its body structure with the 7 Series. The structure is known internally as CLAR – ‚cluster architecture‘ – and uses more aluminium for its floorpan and bulkheads than the skeleton of the outgoing F10 5 Series. There’s also more use of aluminium for castings, helping to trim weight by as much as 100kg, despite the growth in size.

Powering the new model will be a familiar choice of turbocharged four and six-cylinder engines, with a new plug-in petrol-electric powertrain joining the ranks.

Lower-powered cars will use BMW’s latest B47 diesel and B48 petrol four-cylinder units – all in 2.0-litre form, like today’s F10 model.

BMW’s new B57 diesel and B58 petrol six-cylinder engines will offer more power. These units use a standardised 500cc individual cylinder capacity for an overall volume of 3.0 litres. One of the diesels will gain an additional electrically driven turbo to improve low-down grunt, upping peak output towards 390bhp.

The most potent non-M model will receive a newly upgraded 444bhp 4.4-litre V8 petrol engine, first seen in the 750i.

The new 5 Series will also inherit hybrid technology from the 330e, 740e and X5 xDrive40e. The hybrid system is made up of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with an electric motor mounted within the gearbox and a lithium ion battery located in the floor of the boot. The system can run in full electric model for more than 20 miles.

The M5 model will use an updated version of the current car’s 4.4-litre V8 with a likely power output of more than 560bhp.

The new 5 Series will be revealed in October and will go on sale next year. Its rivals will continue to be the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Audi A6 and Jaguar XF.

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/2017-bmw-5-series-teased-new-official-video