Answers inline below. I just dropped off my M40 for a battery issue and got into the previous gen X3 for a minute and personally there is no comparison for me. The quality of materials is night and day. Add in the improvements in electronics, driving dynamics, NVH advancements etc and this car is a slam dunk. I think BMW hit a home run with this one although I am sure the X3M will be next level.
Quote:
Originally Posted by najnad
I finally got to get hands on the new 2018 X3 M40i and even a test drive at my local dealership. While overall it is better looking and more powerful than my 2011 X3 35i M-Sport, there are a few annoyances:
1. No ///M steering wheel. It may have a "sport" steering wheel, it is not an ///M wheel and is different than what is available on the X5M, M3, etc. Should be an option to get the real ///M wheel, but there is no option for that, despite all the ///M logos all over the place. I prefer the ///M wheel.
A. This is a well documented concern. We all prefer the M wheel, but just not available right now
2. Rear badging looks cheap in person, swapping the X3 to the driver's side in a different font and a large ///M40i on the passengers side. Should have kept the X3 on the passenger's side in the same font as other X3's and put the ///M40i on the side like they have on other models.
A. Personally I am glad there are no side badges. They changed the look of the badges, at least on the M40, and they are now a brushed bronze color. I like the look of the new badges much better than the old chrome look
3. Driver's seating position...something just felt off. I didnt measure anything, but it almost felt like the dash was higher in the new X3, throwing off the sight lines from the driver's seat.
A. It took me a little while to get comfortable as well. I have found my happy place now, but I still feel there is too much distance between the window sill and arm rest.
4. Exhaust note was great, esp in sport mode.
5. New displays, both HUD and Nav, were very good.
6. Rear seats can recline slightly, more of a gimmick in my opinion.
A. This is a great feature if you are using car seats in the rear or more specifically booster seats with backs on them. It allows for the different angles that car seats and boosters put the kids in.
Beyond that, there wasnt much that was significantly different, good or bad, to the F25 in my opinion.
I did notice the new X3's have an active grill, they open or close, but the salesperson I spoke with didnt know what triggered them to open or close other than if the engine was on. But then again, she didnt know much about the X3 other than it was new...
Looks like i will be waiting for the X3M and skip the X3 M40i...
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