I live in Southern California and I always hear on the radio a commercial about how the BMW 5-series is the slowest in its class, which is in price depression.
I did a little research of my own, using KBB.com, comparing a 1998 Lexus GS 300, 1998 BMW 5 Series 528i, 1998 MB E-Class E320 and 1998 Audi A6 2.8.
These are my results (Base retail price):
1998 Lexus GS 300 Sedan 4D: $15,250
1998 BMW 5 Series 528i Sedan 4D: $15,100
1998 Mercedes-Benz E-Class E320 Sedan 4D: $14,050
1998 Audi A6 Sedan 4D 2.8: $9,915
Source: KBB.com (http://www.kbb.com/KBB/Selection/Equipment.aspx)