First 2k with 35d

[Terp335]

What can I say, I absolutely love this car. This forum has been extremely helpful in deciding which vehicle to choose so I figured it was my turn to contribute back. This won't be an expert review, but merely my thoughts/impressions on the vehicle so take it for what its worth.

After putting just shy of 1800 miles on our 35d and getting back from a 600 mile round trip ride to the beach I can say that this is the nicest SUV we've ever owned.

- 35d Engine: I had originally wanted the 8 cylinder, but opted for this engine because I purchased the vehicle and wanted something that offered long term reliability with low end torque and I didn't believe the performance of the 35i justified the decrease in mileage when compared to the 35d. This engine is fun to drive, is mated with a smooth transmission, and the gas mileage is as advertised. I caravanned down to the beach with a buddy and his wife/kids. I left town with just a bit more than a 1/4 tank of gas and drove roughly 150 miles before filling up (I didn't need to, but my friend with a Nissan Murano did). We tooled around the beach for a week and he was on fumes on our way out of town while I had enough gas to make it all the way home with 100 miles to spare. I had a thule roof box and a hitch mounted cargo tray full of gear and still averaged 28mpg on the trip.

- Suspension: I left DHP off of my build and opted for the M-Sport suspension. While I understand why some people might prefer comfort, my wife and I have found it to be much too floaty and consistently put it in sport mode. The rear air suspension worked great with our hitch mounted cargo tray. I had a fully loaded cooler and grill latched onto the tray and the rear showed no sag whatsoever. We had a friend meet us in town with a 2015 MDX hauling a similar setup and his rear end sagged noticeably. He also said that his 3 y/o daughter tosses her cookies each time they drive in it (has never been car sick in any other car).

- Comfort Seats with Ventilation: I had them coded for increased airflow. Sometimes I notice them working well and others I notice no benefit at all. The fan noise on the highest setting is pretty loud which means that even after coding it for increased airflow I leave it on the second setting, not on full blast. My sister in-law has an Infiniti QX60 and the seats are so cold you feel like you've pee'd your pants. The comfort seats are great otherwise, and much nicer than the seats in the MDX we came from.

- Night Vision: Works pretty well and does a good job of identifying people. We drove home around 11PM from the beach and I left it on most of the way to detect deer but didn't notice a single one. Its not deer season so I'm not surprised. We had two pedestrian alerts on the trip, one while people were walking on the side of the road as the road went into an "S" curve. The other was driving at 50 MPH late in the evening and bugs were flying everywhere. All of the sudden a red pedestrian alert popped up and an audible beeping occurred. There was nobody on the road but us and million bugs (I posted a picture of my front end covered with bugs a few days ago). Not 15 seconds later there was a thud on the side of the car from a bat that flew into it, and then 2 more bats flew directly in front of the windshield. I'm attributing the rogue pedestrian alert to be a bat that flew in front of the sensor for a split second... I'm just glad that corrective braking wasn't activated to avoid a collision (which I thought was supposed to occur).

- Invisihitch: I love it. Very functional, and the active BMW harness works well with it. Plus, its stealth and requires no bumper cutting.

- Expel Ultimate: Worth every penny after washing my car this weekend and the bugs came off with ease. Road grime came off the rocker panels no rock chips anywhere. I would absolutely use it again on my next car.

- Rear Entertainment: Works great and kids love being able to see the navigation on them. I coded the car for DVD in motion and I'm slightly annoyed that I cannot play something on all three screens at once. I'll probably never use DVD in motion for that reason.

- Steering: Hate it, but you forget about it after a while. I got in my E90 this morning and was reminded what it should feel like.

- HK: Love it. HD radio and BT streaming sound great. We streamed from Google Play and never had an issue with album art keeping up with the tracks being played. It took a while to get the EQ to my sweet spot, but once dialed in, sounds great.

- Other items: I'm pretty anal about rattling and so far haven't noticed anything yet. I did see what others have commented on with respect to exterior panels not lining up as well as they have in previous models. That's a minor nit. Wind noise was a bit of an issue with the cross bars and cargo box on the roof.

Hope some of you found this useful and are enjoying the X as much as we are. Didn't realize this was going to be so long... thanks for reading.

[lowlevelhell]

Great review. I find that I really like the comfort mode (I have the standard suspension, which I greatly enjoy now) and sport mode. Granted there isn't a dynamic damper change in sport, but as I started to get the feel of the car I find myself consistently surprised at the exactness and precision in the suspension despite its generally comfortable ride. Just when it feels like the suspension might lose its footing, the nose tucks nicely and it settles right down.

I spend most of my time cruising at 80 on the highway to work (40 miles) so I'm almost always in eco mode and getting 32 mpg at that speed is incredible.

I too find the diesel to be incomparable as the all-around engine for this car. Especially over the wheezy, wrung-out gasser six. I look forward to purchasing a 5 series with the diesel this coming spring.

Glad you're enjoying your purchase!

[SlammedR8]

Nice review!

Thanks for posting!

[kanvas]

Thanks for the post! You'll get used to the light steering and eventually like it!

[Alan l.]

Originally Posted by kanvas

Thanks for the post! You'll get used to the light steering and eventually like it!

I agree. I came from an E46 and E90 and after having an F10 and now F15 I find it rather pointless to have such stiff steering from the old days. I don't want to feel like i'm working out every time i have to park in a tight spot anymore...

[kanvas]

Originally Posted by Alan l.

I agree. I came from an E46 and E90 and after having an F10 and now F15 I find it rather pointless to have such stiff steering from the old days. I don't want to feel like i'm working out every time i have to park in a tight spot anymore...

When I had the E70, I would notice my forearms become a tad bigger every time after parking

[M5Beast_NYC]

great review. Could you comment on the engine sound, cabin noise accelerating and cruising and exhaust smell inside the cabin from the diesel if any?

[Kzang]

I'm in agreement regards to steering. I was afraid that the F15 steering would be numb and had little feedback. At first the steering was different but as I drove is more often I find that the steering is perfectly fine and prefer it over the heavy steering from my E70 or E60.

[Terp335]

Originally Posted by lowlevelhell

I find that I really like the comfort mode (I have the standard suspension, which I greatly enjoy now) and sport mode. Granted there isn't a dynamic damper change in sport, but as I started to get the feel of the car I find myself consistently surprised at the exactness and precision in the suspension despite its generally comfortable ride. Just when it feels like the suspension might lose its footing, the nose tucks nicely and it settles right down.

Agree, it does settle nicely. There were a few occasions where, at higher speeds, I hit a dip in the highway and felt the nose rock back and forth once before settling. The ride is very smooth in comfort mode with no vibration coming through the steering wheel. In sport mode there is a tiny bit of vibration coming through the steering wheel (granted, like many on here, I have a low tolerance for vibration and take my BMWs to a race shop for all mounting an balancing), which I have attributed the stiffer suspension and ride. I don't think the normal driver would notice... but it is there.

Originally Posted by kanvas

Thanks for the post! You'll get used to the light steering and eventually like it!

Yeah, I totally agree. If my E90 wasn't my daily driver and I didn't switch between the two cars on the weekend I wouldn't notice.

[Terp335]

Originally Posted by Carbonm3ny

great review. Could you comment on the engine sound, cabin noise accelerating and cruising and exhaust smell inside the cabin from the diesel if any?

Thanks. Outside the cabin at idle I don't think the average person would be able to tell its a diesel. The engine is pretty quiet and there is no smell coming from the exhaust. On acceleration I think it becomes audibly clear that its a "d" and not a 35i outside the cabin. For that reason, I would like a sportier exhaust note for sure.... Inside the cabin there is also no hint of diesel smell and the engine is really quiet. On WOT this thing sounds like a pure beast, in my opinion.

The only time I'm really aware I'm driving a diesel is when I'm pumping fuel. I do as some of the others on here and bought some cheap disposable gloves to handle the pump. They are usually a little oily and dirty.

[jugdish]

^ +1

I've never owned a diesel... We rented a Volvo XC60 diesel on a recent trip to Scotland and were a bit worried about the 35d we had on order. The XC60 was unrefined and you could definitely tell it was a diesel from the second you started the engine.

Picked up the X5 and my wife thought they screwed up and gave us a gasser... It was that quiet both inside and outside the cabin. Far more refined then the Volvo diesel.

[lowlevelhell]

Originally Posted by kanvas

When I had the E70, I would notice my forearms become a tad bigger every time after parking

That's how I feel driving my old TR6.