Must-have options?

[Chem14]

Originally Posted by coolidge

Are all these suspension upgrades really needed when driving the posted speed limit in the US? You German autobahn guys I get that.

No, but its more fun with them. Same reason some buy the 50i or X5M or a Porsche.

[Kzang]

Originally Posted by coolidge

Are all these suspension upgrades really needed when driving the posted speed limit in the US? You German autobahn guys I get that.

One can appreciate a good handling vehicle at all speeds ( including us low speeds ).

That's what a BMW is really all about

[coolidge]

I'm just making the point that in the US the standard suspension is likely all you need if you are driving the speed limit, obeying the law, and want to avoid killing some mom and her kids by driving like a jackass on public roads. I'm a firm believer in taking that shit to the track, just saying.

[Kzang]

Originally Posted by coolidge

I'm just making the point that in the US the standard suspension is likely all you need if you are driving the speed limit, obeying the law, and want to avoid killing some mom and her kids by driving like a jackass on public roads. I'm a firm believer in taking that shit to the track, just saying.

Standard suspension feels like I'm driving a Toyota Highlander. It wobbles and nose dives.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say or the connection between a sporty suspension and high speed? Adaptive m suspension or dhp gives the car a more composed ride which keeps the car comfortable, sporty, and firm as the car drives over uneven pavement and it adapts to the imperfection of the roads.

Your concerns about high speed driving and hitting pedestrians is not limited to an x5 that has an upgraded suspension. Any X5 can be of concern... :

[coolidge]

I think you know what I'm talking about, wasn't there a guy just on here talking about how fast he took a ramp in his X5 with the updated suspension. Now that some wanna be race car driver poser idiot recently broad sided me totaling my F150 could mean I'm somewhat irritated with these people who think they are race car drivers and public roads are their race track. Go do track days at a track I say.

The X5 standard suspension I test drove neither wobbled or nose dived at normal speeds. Now our highways do have some ruts from peoples studded snow tires and I did notice it tracked odd in those ruts.

I could make a case for an upgraded suspension for when you need to swerve and drive aggressively to avoid a deer, accident, or some bozo driver. IF the updated suspension adds to control in foul weather, heavy rain, snow, or ice I could see it for that also. I opted for the xDrive for that reason.

About a week ago I was following this idiot who was intentionally swerving onto the shoulder then swerving back onto the road trying to intentionally drift his vehicle seemingly oblivious to the fact that if his tires had hooked up it would have launched him head on into oncoming 55mph traffic. An extreme example but its that kind of horsing around that gets other people injured or worse.

[toxic_bimmer]

Driver Assistance & Driver Assistance Plus (ACC + Stop & Go)
- ACC is very comfortable on long drives, no need to play with gas all the time on highway. Your knees will thank you. You just steer.
- Head-up display is nice and useful feature.
- Speed limit recognition is very handy as well.
- Surround view, if you drive and park a lot in the city environment, you will love it. Ability to check your position is a great bonus.

LED package
- Auto high beam, neat feature, awesome for nighttime driving on highways.

Multi contour seats are great in BMWs, again, if you do a lot of highway driving, you will appreciate them.

[TOPEC]

@coolidge interesting that u did not notice the wobble. it was the very first thing i noticed when i test drove a standard suspension X5 for 24hrs and it was enough to get me a bit nauseated. i am not a person that gets car sick easily too, so i made sure my order had at least m sport suspension added.

[coolidge]

Originally Posted by TOPEC

@coolidge interesting that u did not notice the wobble. it was the very first thing i noticed when i test drove a standard suspension X5 for 24hrs and it was enough to get me a bit nauseated. i am not a person that gets car sick easily too, so i made sure my order had at least m sport suspension added.

Well I do currently drive a 4x4 crew cab truck so the X5 feels like a Rolls in comparison.

As for these suspension packages you have to ask what specifically are you getting? Certainly not a magnetic ride dampening suspension that adjusts 1,000 times a second and certainly not for $900. I may have actually pulled the trigger on a magnetic ride suspension if it was offered.

I became VERY suspicious of manufacturers double talk, puffery and lack of specific information on suspensions when looking at the Audi SQ5. So the 'S' model its version of M, it has Drive Select feature and a "Sport" mode and when you press the button it does nothing, zero to the suspension. The suspension is not adjustable at all.

So the $900 Active M Suspension what are you really getting for $900. It appears all you get is the automatic rear self-leveling air bag suspension. Is that really "M" or are they over selling the M here. Fiat/Chrysler is slapping air bag suspensions on just about everything, trucks, Jeep Grand Cherokee's. If you are towing or hauling people with the 3rd row seat yes there's $900 of value there I'm just not buying the "M" marketing hype.

DHP adds adjustable shocks and Active Roll Stabilization, again adjustable shocks have been around for quite a while. The active roll stabilization is note worthy. But look at the value proposition here. First you have to opt for the M Sport line at $4,450 which other than the sport transmission and paddle shifters is nothing but eye candy. Then you have to add DHP at $3,600 then active M suspension at $900. That's $8,950 and you don't get a magnetic ride suspension?

That's my 2 cents worth.

[P1]

Originally Posted by toxic_bimmer

Driver Assistance & Driver Assistance Plus (ACC + Stop & Go)
- ACC is very comfortable on long drives, no need to play with gas all the time on highway. Your knees will thank you. You just steer.
- Head-up display is nice and useful feature.
- Speed limit recognition is very handy as well.
- Surround view, if you drive and park a lot in the city environment, you will love it. Ability to check your position is a great bonus.

LED package
- Auto high beam, neat feature, awesome for nighttime driving on highways.

Multi contour seats are great in BMWs, again, if you do a lot of highway driving, you will appreciate them.

I agree with all your statements!

[toxic_bimmer]

Originally Posted by P1et

I agree with all your statements!

One more thing you will appreciate is the frontal collision warning system that preloads the brakes. It is super handy in both city (low speed traffic) and on highway. It did help me in a few instances. Can't thank it enough.

[P1]

Originally Posted by toxic_bimmer

One more thing you will appreciate is the frontal collision warning system that preloads the brakes. It is super handy in both city (low speed traffic) and on highway. It did help me in a few instances. Can't thank it enough.

Yep, mine has that. Works like magic.

[SlammedR8]

Originally Posted by toxic_bimmer

One more thing you will appreciate is the frontal collision warning system that preloads the brakes. It is super handy in both city (low speed traffic) and on highway. It did help me in a few instances. Can't thank it enough.

I have this feature but can someone confirm if it actually brakes for you?

Because I've seen the little red car pop up on the heads up display but I don't think it ever braked for me

[toxic_bimmer]

Originally Posted by SlammedR8

I have this feature but can someone confirm if it actually brakes for you?

Because I've seen the little red car pop up on the heads up display but I don't think it ever braked for me

It works in two modes essentially, as a part of ACC and as a stand alone feature, provided you don't turn off these features.

1. When ACC is engaged it will brake for you actively and dynamically adjust your speed to the speed of the car in font of you if it travels slower than your preset cruising speed.

2. When ACC is off the radar is still on, and if it senses a rapid slow down of the vehicle in front of you it will first preload the brakes so that when you touch the brake pedal the brakes will be applied at a higher/necessary rate to prevent a collision. If the speed differential is too big and/or rapid it will apply the brakes on its own.

The red car icon on your screen means that the car in front of you has slowed down too quickly.

[Kzang]

And without ACC it brakes for you at low speeds with dap+. I think It's 35 or 40 mph and below. And I can confirm this from my car.

[SlammedR8]

Originally Posted by toxic_bimmer

It works in two modes essentially, as a part of ACC and as a stand alone feature, provided you don't turn off these features.

1. When ACC is engaged it will brake for you actively and dynamically adjust your speed to the speed of the car in font of you if it travels slower than your preset cruising speed.

2. When ACC is off the radar is still on, and if it senses a rapid slow down of the vehicle in front of you it will first preload the brakes so that when you touch the brake pedal the brakes will be applied at a higher/necessary rate to prevent a collision. If the speed differential is too big and/or rapid it will apply the brakes on its own.

The red car icon on your screen means that the car in front of you has slowed down too quickly.

Thanks for the info!
I don't have ACC so the first point doesn't apply to me but I guess the second point still does.

Thanks again for clarifying!

[dsad1]

Originally Posted by toxic_bimmer

It works in two modes essentially, as a part of ACC and as a stand alone feature, provided you don't turn off these features.

1. When ACC is engaged it will brake for you actively and dynamically adjust your speed to the speed of the car in font of you if it travels slower than your preset cruising speed.

2. When ACC is off the radar is still on, and if it senses a rapid slow down of the vehicle in front of you it will first preload the brakes so that when you touch the brake pedal the brakes will be applied at a higher/necessary rate to prevent a collision. If the speed differential is too big and/or rapid it will apply the brakes on its own.

The red car icon on your screen means that the car in front of you has slowed down too quickly.

I am not a big fan of the brake preload, but I get why it exists. I have had it engage a couple times, and it just made things worse instead of better.

[RoundelRebel]

Originally Posted by coolidge

DHP adds adjustable shocks and Active Roll Stabilization, again adjustable shocks have been around for quite a while. The active roll stabilization is note worthy. But look at the value proposition here. First you have to opt for the M Sport line at $4,450 which other than the sport transmission and paddle shifters is nothing but eye candy. Then you have to add DHP at $3,600 then active M suspension at $900. That's $8,950 and you don't get a magnetic ride suspension?

That's my 2 cents worth.

I completely agree with you there. Every option is nice to have if you have $$$ to throw at it. But let's be honest - the question is if you are budgeting yourself, which one would you choose instead of another? I don't think I've ever seen any option being called "not worth the money" on these forums and understandly so. We all love BMW and I would love to have ALL the options - even the Blackberry adapters. But let's be realistic...

As someone who's quite a bit of BMW Performance Center driving, I would never go for the M marketing hype on a SUV. The standard suspension is really nice but then I don't use a 4000lb vehicle like my race car on a crowded highway. I think the option is really nice and essential on a M3 but it's not a must-have on a vehicle that is so high off the ground. To be honest, not sure why something that is free on the GLE (ride comfort) is marked up so obscenely by BMW.

I think the Driver Assistance packages are nice and the HK audio upgrades are something you'll enjoy. The winter package in colder climates and seat ventilation down south are good options to have. The LED headlight upgrade is nice but the brightness and the color temperature is cause for concern and (even doctors are issuing warnings about how that affects your eyes and attentiveness). Ceramic controls are really nice but get screaming hot in summer. Parking control if you frequently park in cities is a nice little feature for cheap. Premium package is a must only because it has obvious things like keyless and 4 zone climate control.

Of course, others feel free to disagree - the beauty is that this is your car and you get to decide what you want Hardly anything is "essential". If we wanted essential, then CR-V is the way to go...

[Sharp_Cai]

Must have for my build
Surround View (Wife's top pick)
M Sport for the look (Wife's sec top pick)
Cold Weather Pack ( Wife's third top pick)
Adaptive M suspension - Do not know what exactly this is and how it works, but cheaper than DHP. something is better than nothing. just want adjustable suspension.

Everything else we can live without. but still add some of them for a nice premium car.

Premium / Drive Assist / Drive Assist Plus / Lighting / 20" wheel / HK / Sun shade

Packages didn't opt - 2 cents for my build only. Not apply to anybody else.

Soft close door - Nice feature, but useless. Plus expensive to fix if broke.
Ceramic Controllers - Nice look, but rather to get M performance shift knob.
Night version - needless to say. Not going to drive X5 for special ops...
Rear seat entertainment system - iPad holder is the alternative.
3 Row seats - I will buy a Van if need to haul 7 ppl every day or weekend. If not, extra 2 ppl can hoop in the second car or use Uber.
Premium seats with ventilation - nice option that I'd like to get, but wife says no...
Leather Dashboard - I don't mind pay for some fancy options that does nothing, but when we buying a car worth 70K above and car factory still nickel and dime me for a leather dashboard. It just doesn't work for me.

[alphaod]

HUD, LED headlights, surround view, comfort seats, spare tire. Just used the last one having a tire blow hundreds of miles from any place with tires I need.

The rest is nice to have.

[Buckerine]

M-sport - totally changes the look of the car, especially with lighter colors. Way more aggressive with M-sport package

Driver assistance package - gotta have the HUD and rear view camera

Driver assistance plus - regret getting this for the surround view and ACC

Multicontour seats & leather dashboard - these two in combo completely change the feel and look of the interior. Starts to feel like a seriously premium truck.

Couldn't really care less about the rest. Wife wants a 3rd row, but I think it's so tight back there it's virtually useless. Comfort rear seats would be nice, but I'm never back there so who cares.

[coolidge]

Originally Posted by RoundelRebel

Ceramic controls are really nice but get screaming hot in summer.

My BMW sales associate told me the great thing about ceramic controls is that they don't get hot in the summer like the normal controls. True story. I opted for the LED lighting package, I think this can vary depending on where you live. Here in the Pacific NW it frequently gets dark, gloomy, lots of rain, fog, our roads once wet makes it even more difficult to see its like they absorb the light, and its a rain forest so lots of trees and vegetation on the sides of the roads. Suffices to say its hard to see at night so the more light the better in our area.