BMW Korea, the local unit of the high-end German automaker, has been adding a touch of diversity to the bestselling 5-Series, introducing high performance and luxury versions of the popular series, the company said Wednesday.

“New versions of the top-selling 5-Series have been added to meet the demand of different consumer preferences,” said an official of BMW Korea.

The seventh-generation new 520d, released here in February this year, was the best-selling midsize sedan among imported cars by monthly sales between August and October, according to data provided by the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.

The 520d luxury special edition and 520d M Sport Package special edition were released for drivers searching for quality 520d cars that come with a reasonable price tag, the company said.

The 520d M Sport Package models are priced between 63.3 million won ($58,400) and 71 million won.

The high performance M550d xDrive also newly joined the 5-Series lineup last month with a price tag of 123.7 million won.

The 520d premium sedan has retained No.1 spot as the bestselling import car model by annual sales for years since its launch here in 1996, the company said.

As of the most preferred foreign carmaker here, BMW Korea sold a total 3,215 units in September this year, surpassing the 3,000 mark in monthly sales for the first time. Korea came in as the company’s second-biggest market on a global scale, following the US, the company said.

Over 7.9 million units of the BMW 5-Series have been sold worldwide since its 1972 launch on sophisticated design, outstanding efficiency and driving dynamics.

By Kim Bo-gyung (lisakim425@heraldcorp.com))