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First three weeks with our 35d
Here are my thoughts after the first three weeks with our car.
Our build:
14XI X5 xDr35d Model
A90 Dark Graphite Metallic
LCCY Canberra Beige Dakota
ZDA Driver Assistance Package
ZDB Driver Assistance Plus
ZLP Lighting Package
ZPP Premium Package
328 Running Boards
346 Chrome Line exterior
417 Rear shades
456 Multi Contour Seats
4AC Poplar wood trim
4NB 4-zone climate
4NC 3rd row climate
4UB 3rd row seat
The only option I would probably not get if I could do the order again is the running boards. The other comments I have read ended up being pretty much spot on about the running boards getting in the way when you get in and out of the car. Our last car had them and they worked well for the kids, but the F15's design is a little too high and narrow to use getting into the car and they do hit your leg when you get out. Not a big deal, but they are the one item that has not really added anything to the car.
35d, love it. Lots of torque and really nice around town and on the highway. The last diesel I owned was an Audi in the 80's and there is no comparison to a modern diesel engine.
LED lights, they look great and work great. The interior lighting is great at night too. I can't wait to code the no-dazzle, but so far the existing adaptive lighting works great on twisty roads at night.
3rd row seat. Works fine for my kids and that's what we needed from that option.
Multi contour. Definitely a plus, they are great on road trips. I'm still dialing in the perfect settings and they keep getting more comfortable. The leather trim on the driver's thigh bolster came loose, but I was able to reattach it to the clips on the bottom of the seat. That is the only delivery defect I found (too bad I didn't catch it at the dealership).
Canberra beige dakota. Within the first week I could see marks from my wife's jeans. I saw another posting about Lexol leather cleaner and conditioner, so I tried it and it took the marks right off. It didn't even require any scrubbing, just a little Lexol on a microfiber cloth and the denim marks disappeared. Looks like I'll be cleaning the seats monthly, but the interior looks great, so I don't have a problem with that. Lexol works great, I also used it on another car that is 12 years old and it really worked magic on those seats (those seats took some scrubbing).
Surround view camera. Really cool in parking lots and in my garage which is pretty tight. One cool camera item; I got a warning indicator on the dash today and when I checked on the message in iDrive it told me that the rear view camera lens needed cleaning. It didn't really look too dirty, but I wiped the camera lens clean and the message cleared. I wasn't expecting the car to be monitoring the camera clarity, but that's pretty cool.
All of the features in the ZDA and ZDB packages are pretty useful. The one item that I regret not ordering is ACC. Wasn't sure I'd really use the feature when we ordered, but if I had to do it again I'd add that option.
4 zone climate was great today on a road trip with the kids controlling their own temp. I like the extra air vents for the back seat that you only get with the 4 zone option.
Premium package. All good.
So far the overall MPG is running at 26 with mostly in town driving. I've used less than three tanks of fuel in the 900 miles we have covered so far.
Opti-coat. Got that done last week and it really puts a nice finish on the paint. Went for a road trip today and the bugs and road grime just washed away with a quick spray from a hose. No scrubbing or soap required. I think it will keep the car looking good between washes.
External media in iDrive. I found that copying the music folders from iTunes onto a thumb drive and putting the playlist xml files in the root of the drive allows all of the playlists to function as they do on the computer. Really simple and didn't require any adjustments to the playlists or music folders. I found two cool apps that automate the copying process on a Mac; Road Trip.app from the Apple App Store or iTunes Export by Eric Daugherty (multi platform too).
I haven't tried coding anything yet, but that's the next step for what I want to do with the car.
Looking forward to taking the family on a road trip to Canada this summer. Should be a great drive up I-5 through Oregon and Washington!
The car is my wife's daily driver and she keeps telling me how much she likes driving it. That pretty much sums up our initial impressions, no regrets here.
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