The official, live unveiling of the 2011 BMW 5-Series, which carries the internal codename F10, isn’t due until Monday, November 23, but the first batch of photos of the executive sedan with the ‘skirt’ lifted just high enough so we can get a good peak of the front-end design, have already made their way to the internet.

To no one’s surprise, the wide, prominent kidney grille and the shape of the headlights of the new mid-size sedan are almost identical to the 5-Series GT “cross-thingy” which in turn was inspired by the latest 7-Series limousine.

When it goes on sale in 2010, the new BMW 5-Series will be offered with a mix of four-cylinder and straight-six turbo diesels as well as naturally aspirated and turbocharged six-cylinder, and V8 turbo gasoline engines.

Unless someone drops the lid on sixth-generation 5-Series earlier, we’ll have the ‘Full Monty’ on the Bavarian automaker’s Audi A6 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class rival on Monday.

Via: Bimmerpost -Thanks for the tip Tim!