Advice appreciated as I finalise spec of 40d!

[Minda]

Oh yeah one more thing if you dont want to get 20's from what i recall another member was looking for some 20's to replace his 19's maybe you two could come to some sort of arrangement! Come on NewX5 and MJim PM each other and maybe you could help each other!

[Avtar]

You matchmaker..........

[x555]

There is some good info on here for when us poor e53 owners can eventually afford one of those fancy new machines (he says tring to find a smilie playing a small violin ) perhaps someone could do a write up like AW8 did for the e53

[MJim]

Bayrak, many thanks for clarifying that one. I'd picked up from another forum that the active cruise control resulted in a large ugly lens being fitted in the grill, but that was for an older car so the system must be more discreet now which is great. I'm now sold on the ACC.

Minda, yes tricky one that which wheels to go for. I test drove one with the 333M wheels and didn't find the ride too bad, but the roads were very good (unusual I know!). I think the 333M wheels look great, but the 19in 223M wheels are still good looking (in my view, although haven't seen them for real) and also more 'subtle'. I'm assuming that the 19in will still handle very similarly(?), and a little more comfort will probably go down well for a family car. The problem is again that like the audio it's all down to personal preference and to some the 20in ride is comfortable and to others it's a bone shaker! [But I can see the way this is headed - I'll end up going for 21in rims!!]

I'm now also sold on the HUD. Audio is a tricky one. I usually have a couple of noisy boys in the car so going for the highest fidelity is going to be a waste of money most the time. I just want something where I can enjoy the music and not be struck by how awful it sounds. A shame really that I'm even having to look into this as I would have expected the base audio to be good in an X5, which it clearly isn't.

I'm interested in the comfort access that I see you went for. A problem we've had a couple of times with our current car is it being unlocked from inside the house, we think either inadvertantly by us in handling the remote or our son playing with it. I don't know if the standard BMW system would auto lock after being unlocked with no motion detected in the car? If not we'll have to look at the comfort access as well. Kerching kerching kerching!

Once again, many many thanks for all your feedback, which is incredibly helpful!

[Minda]

[quote=""Avtar""]You matchmaker..........[/quote]

[petert]

I don't think that the standard audio is bad at all - though I'm not sure if it is the same in Canada as the UK.

On my car on the iDrive it is possible to select an option for the car to lock the doors after unlocking if no door is opened within a certain time. I think that is what you refer to in your penultimate paragraph.

Hope this helps,

Peter T

[shocks]

[quote=""MJim""]
I'm interested in the comfort access that I see you went for. A problem we've had a couple of times with our current car is it being unlocked from inside the house, we think either inadvertantly by us in handling the remote or our son playing with it. I don't know if the standard BMW system would auto lock after being unlocked with no motion detected in the car? If not we'll have to look at the comfort access as well. Kerching kerching kerching!

Once again, many many thanks for all your feedback, which is incredibly helpful![/quote]

I have the comfort access - love it !!! though when we were away last weekend we left the car the hotel valet to park and key was my pocket - que comedy scene 40mins later when mrs and I went back down for a wee walk and theres the X in the middle of the hotel reception road, driver window down, saying to our selves weird !!! blipped the key to lock it up just as the valet guy appeared with a look of huge relief on his face "are you looking for these I call out", dangling the keys... "ah sir you can't believe the drama we've just been through, no one could work out where the keys were, we checked pockets, other cars and grilled the team, thank you so so much we really thought we messed up !!!" - this guy was possible the most relieved doorman i've seen ! after a wee bit of banter off he headed with the car

Any way I digress ! the comfort access is very good imho, car locks when it senses that your near (not quite sussed how far but seems to be 1-2mtrs); other options I'd recommend :

20" rims - great looking - not so great in the snow
Pan Sunroof - fantastic
All round camera
Head light assist
Pro Sat Nav media pack (obviously)
Sun Protection glass
Comfort Windscreen
Auto-dim mirrors
Heated seats
Adaptive headlights

Also got soft close doors, not sure they add much tbh, ski bag - no idea what possessed me as will have the skis normally on the roof carrier system, didn't in the end get the stereo upgrade for same reasons as yourself with the kids

Things I wished I'd gone for - powered tailgate is about all; still wondering about the comfort seats but the sport seats are really good

[MJim]

Peter T - many thanks on both accounts. If I can avoid another extra I would like to as it's getting pricey!

Shocks - the comfort access sounds fantastic but think I'll draw a line on that one. It is tempting though. You should be on commission! I plan on going for all your other extras save the 20in wheels (at the moment) (how comfortable do you find them on rougher roads?), the comfort glass (what does this do?) and the soft close doors.

As ever, many thanks for your advice!

[NewX5]

I will have to say mine is doing really well in the snow with the 19s my road is small with only 8 houses so we never get gritted or snow cleared, usually every year it is a nightmare to get off road but the x just ran through it I think you will be happy with the 19s.

[MJim]

NewX5, great to hear that! Are you now happy you made the 'right' choice in wheels, having been thinking you should possibly have gone with the 20's? I'm still undecided but leaning to the 19's. I may use the car to take the family skiing for which I understand the 19's are better, based on comments re the current weather. How do you find the handling? Is it still taught like the 20s or is a price paid here? If the only real differences are aesthetics and comfort, it makes it an easier call. I haven't seen the 223M's in the flesh but IMHO look great in the photos.

I think I also see you have a non OEM DVD set up in the back. Which one did you go for? Recommend it? No way I'm spending £1500 odd on the manufacturer's one!

[NewX5]

I cannot comment on the 20s as I have never driven on them my initial worries was that they would look small in the arch but they are perfect for me anyway. We are currently using the nextbase setup in the rear as you get built in DVDs on each unit, works really well with no issues other than cannot be bothered with having to take out and also the wire. I have been looking at loads of other options and because of them active headrests you are unable to get any dual system built in. There is a few solutions but mainly with a pod being built and attached to rear of seat hardly streamlined in fact I personally thinks it looks crap for the money (£1100 -£1600).

[MJim]

Maybe 20s look slightly better, but they are still good looking wheels and look great in my opinion. The added comfort I should think is worth it for a family car. Thanks for the advice re the DVD units.

Moving on to the smaller things, do owners find the Extended Storage and Adaptive Fixing System useful? I can see how it could come in handy to stop things rattling around where the luggage compartment isn't full, but are they effective and do the rails become a trap for rubbish and jam up? We have young kids so muddy bikes etc will bring dirt in on a regular basis!

As ever, any feedback very gratefully received!

[535dboy]

Buy a Porsche Cayenne

HTH

[535dboy]

For looks the car really needs 20" + wheels, it looks very underwheeled with that. HOWEVER ! If you don't care what the car looks like then stick with the std 19s. The ride will be far better and as you have pointed out it will be far better in the snow. My Navigator is on only 18s which are really small for the car but as I use it a lot in the bad weather over there that is all I want

Personal comments on other bits

HUD - waste of money. Had it on a loaner M6 for the week and barely used it.
Pan Roof - Awesome, as long as it doesn't break, which they do !
Comfort access - I originally ordered it then deleted before build was confirmed. It was expensive although if I had my time again I probably would. Word of warning, just be careful how close you keep the keys in the house to the car. Some I know have been able to open the car with the car on the drive. So if they can scumbags can too
Headlight assist is good 75% of the time, dangerous other times. Cheap enough though if you fancy it.
Powered tailgate was great on my old 535, not sure how useful it would be on a split boot though?
I upgraded the speakers on mine to the intermediate option which I am happy with.
ACC - TBH I think a waste of money

[MJim]

Thanks for you thoughts. That rules out the comfort access for me - the car's parked on the street outside the house! Interesting what you say about the high-beam assistant - why's it dangerous? There are 4 audio set ups - standard, business, professional and individual - I presume you've got the business?