Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by petrol engines and utilizing the 5-door wagon body style within the same 'Luxury car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (front for the Rover and rear in the case of the BMW). The first one has a Rover-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 117hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 6-cylinder, 24-valves 192hp engine designed by BMW.

A starting point here would be to take a look at the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests which were performed on both of the cars, with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. Both vehicles belong to the luxury car segment, which is generally a very good thing safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. On the other hand, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, the German car offers a marginal difference of 7% more metal.

I don't like generalizing things when it comes to reliability, although it does seem that Rover as a brand displays somewhat better results, at least on all of the models level. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Rover with an average rating of 4.5, and models under the BMW badge with 4.1 out of 5. Independent research findings rank 75 7% below average, and 5 Series 16% below the first one. Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as the British car rank it on average as 4.6, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 2.8 out of 5.

BMW is way more agile, reaching 100km/h in 4 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 232 kilometers per hour, 44km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy an obvious choice would be the British car, averaging around 7.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (36 mpg), in combined cycle. That's 27% difference compared to the German car!

Rover is apparently more reliable, not too much, but just enough. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, the German car offers slightly better overall protection and takes the lead. It all continues in the same direction, with BMW outracing its opponent in any situation possible, making it better choice for boy racers. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... It's really tough to make a final decision here, but if I'd need to, I'd say Rover. Anyway, that's the most objective conclusion I could've came up with and it's based solely on the information found on this website. Aspects such as design, practicality, brand value and driving experience are there for you to measure them out. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.