[ComingInHot]

Adding some pics that might be useful to someone.

[ggalanis]

Originally Posted by ggalanis

I often use them at the highest setting while stationary with the engine turned off in my X5 with the HVAC set to auto on the lowest fan setting while I am waiting for the wife or picking up one of my kids from somewhere and have never really heard them. Surely if I killed the HVAC, had the radio shut completely off and listened for it I would hear them, but in the iX, at the high settings there were significantly louder. At the highest setting, I'd say annoyingly loud actually. So loud that I honestly thought it was the HVAC I was hearing.

I mean maybe they quiet down a bit after being broken in... the car was literally brand new and I test drove it the first day it was available. Maybe it was just a problem with this one seat.... who knows. I would need more time with it to be sure. I would still get them, just not ever really use them on the higher settings unless I was really hot. I prefer them being quiet.

[mose121]

Here's my advice. You live in the North East where it's below 45 degrees for 4 months and it snows. You're buying a $100k car but you don't want winter tires, which anyone in the NE should have whether they get snow or not, all because you don't won't to be bothered with having to swap keys with your dealers service dept valet pickup driver twice a year. Come on brah, priorities. Your wife possibly kids will be in that car and you're cheaping out on your safety. The instant and massive hit of torque in an electric car is a detriment to traction in winter conditions. Are you going to count on you and your wife changing the settings to eco pro mode every time there's snow and ice? Yeah, I found out the hard way. All season tires are mediocre at everything, good at nothing. You'll both come to appreciate the dry cold and winter weather traction/confidence winter tires give you. Difference in dry stopping distance in freezing temps b/t an a/s and winter tire is quite often the difference maker. If you can afford the car, you can afford the right tires. Option choices are just your personal preferences, unlike your safety.

Sweet ride! ✌

[hugo_nz]

Originally Posted by ggalanis

I often use them at the highest setting while stationary with the engine turned off in my X5 with the HVAC set to auto on the lowest fan setting while I am waiting for the wife or picking up one of my kids from somewhere and have never really heard them. Surely if I killed the HVAC, had the radio shut completely off and listened for it I would hear them, but in the iX, at the high settings there were significantly louder. At the highest setting, I'd say annoyingly loud actually. So loud that I honestly thought it was the HVC I was hearing.

Interesting observation. I'll test this out when I take delivery of my iX since I optioned ventilated seats.

[Bird~Dawg]

Originally Posted by ggalanis

I often use them at the highest setting while stationary with the engine turned off in my X5 with the HVAC set to auto on the lowest fan setting while I am waiting for the wife or picking up one of my kids from somewhere and have never really heard them. Surely if I killed the HVAC, had the radio shut completely off and listened for it I would hear them, but in the iX, at the high settings there were significantly louder. At the highest setting, I'd say annoyingly loud actually. So loud that I honestly thought it was the HVAC I was hearing.

The ventilated seat fan seemed loud to me even on the lowest setting. I thought it was set to high and tried to turn it down, but no sir, it was already on low. Higher settings were progressively more irksome. Having said that, the forced air HVAC wasn't running at the time. I'm thinking I should try it again with the HVAC fan running at a moderate speed and see if the vented seat fan noise blends in or is still distinctly noticeable. I didn't think to do that when I was in the car.

[ggalanis]

Originally Posted by Bird~Dawg

The ventilated seat fan seemed loud to me even on the lowest setting. I thought it was set to high and tried to turn it down, but no sir, it was already on low. Higher settings were progressively more irksome. Having said that, the forced air HVAC wasn't running at the time. I'm thinking I should try it again with the HVAC fan running at a moderate speed and see if the vented seat fan noise blends in or is still distinctly noticeable. I didn't think to do that when I was in the car.

I have a brake fluid service due on my X5 in April so if I don't go to the dealer between now and then to revisit some parts of the iX, I will try to check it out during that appointment.

[Bird~Dawg]

Originally Posted by mose121

Here's my advice. You live in the North East where it's below 45 degrees for 4 months and it snows. You're buying a $100k car but you don't want winter tires, which anyone in the NE should have whether they get snow or not, all because you don't won't to be bothered with having to swap keys with your dealers service dept valet pickup driver twice a year. Come on brah, priorities. Your wife possibly kids will be in that car and you're cheaping out on your safety. The instant and massive hit of torque in an electric car is a detriment to traction in winter conditions. Are you going to count on you and your wife changing the settings to eco pro mode every time there's snow and ice? Yeah, I found out the hard way. All season tires are mediocre at everything, good at nothing. You'll both come to appreciate the dry cold and winter weather traction/confidence winter tires give you. Difference in dry stopping distance in freezing temps b/t an a/s and winter tire is quite often the difference maker. If you can afford the car, you can afford the right tires. Option choices are just your personal preferences, unlike your safety.

Sweet ride! ✌

We'll said and I couldn't agree with this more. Safety is paramount and all season tires simply don't cut it in regions with cold winter temps and snow. Performance summer tires are better in warm weather, and winter tires blow all seasons away in winter. From a convenience perspective, I store my off season wheels/tires at my dealership. A few extra minutes on the way to/from the office to switch to a loaner car and grab a complimentary latte - not a huge effort. Money wise, I get a discount on my insurance for running winters, and my tires last longer since each set travels less distance per year. A set of summers plus a set of winters will last as long as two sets of "no-season" tires give or take. They're not as expensive as you might think from that perspective. But to me, the money doesn't mean anything compared to my family's safety. Winters all day.

[PABrian]

Originally Posted by Paladin1

Premium Package plus every additional package available in the US checked - because that's what I have on my X5 now. In fact, the iX is missing: the Luggage Package (floor-retractabe cargo cover - understandable with underfloor battery), Night Vision Assist (likely never to return to any BMW - but very useful to me), H&C cupholders - which I actually found useful as well, compact spare (understand also with weight restrictions), passenger massage (a casualty of the times, but marginally acceptable if the seats are comfy enough) ), USB ports in the console storage area, rear window privacy screens (and I'm assuming better tinting will compensate), perhaps adjustable ride height (actually useful in snow), a roof rack (although I believe it can be added). No towing package, but I don't use one, and particularly wouldn't with an electric car. On the plus side, it does have features currently unavailable now in the 40i - IAS, soft-close doors, air suspension, B&W, so maybe evens out.

Retractable cargo cover into the floor isn't missing because the battery is there...battery is under the cabin. Under the trunk floor is the motor and electronics. That was also a very low take rate option.

Compact spare is missing primarily due to space limitations, but weight is also a big consideration.

Ride height is adjustable in the iX with air suspension, but not like it is on the X5/X7. It works like the 7 Series, where there's a normal height, a "low" height (high highway speeds and in Sport), and a "high" height achieved by pressing the button in the cabin. It does also lower to the "low" height after you park, but it isn't as dramatic as the loading height in an X5/X7.

Originally Posted by Paladin1

To be clear, though, the iX has IAS, B&W, soft-close doors and air suspension. They are missing in the. current production X5 40i. You may be right and they could return - HK has already been added back to the 45e - but I wouldn't count on any time soon - as in not within the next 3 years. The M50i has some of the missing 40i features, so maybe BMW is nudging consumers toward either a V8 or an electric - pretty schizophrenic!

From what I heard the reason why some features are on higher engines only is because they aren't able to get AS MANY of those parts as they want, so they offer them on bigger engine models as a way of cutting down on the pool of potential builds that request them. Smaller pool of builds means lower likelihood of orders with them which means greater likelihood they'll be able to fill every request for them.

Originally Posted by razor488

Radiant Heating - Yes (I feel like heating seats should be standard on a car of this price).

Just to 100% clarify: heated front seats are standard. Radiant Heating gives you heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, heated front arm rests, heating elements in all 4 doors, and heating elements on the underside of the dashboard. The benefits from what I've been told are quicker/more even heating and using less energy to do it.

Originally Posted by Doctor///M

IMO the interior feels deficient without any leather option; get the whole sustainability push but kills it for me. Not to mention the trunk space is comparable to an X3 and has a fixed lid system which further limits cargo space (also adds to interior deficiency).

Also the black exterior spec with black wheels on the the show car I saw was completely uninspiring.

Had high hopes, but can't warm up to it.

Not having leather isn't a sustainability option...it's just an option. You can get SensaTec or leather (which in this case is on the level of Nappa/Merino quality), just like plenty of other models. The wool/microfiber is just an added option and forced on nobody.

Also you can remove the cargo covers in the trunk just like any other BMW with hard panels there. I'll agree it isn't as convenient as a roller cover, but if space is a concern, just remove them and leave them in your garage when you go to haul that stuff. Otherwise they won't get in your way the majority of the time the car is on the road.

[LittleJoe]

Originally Posted by PABrian

Retractable cargo cover into the floor isn't missing because the battery is there...battery is under the cabin. Under the trunk floor is the motor and electronics. That was also a very low take rate option.

Compact spare is missing primarily due to space limitations, but weight is also a big consideration.

Ride height is adjustable in the iX with air suspension, but not like it is on the X5/X7. It works like the 7 Series, where there's a normal height, a "low" height (high highway speeds and in Sport), and a "high" height achieved by pressing the button in the cabin. It does also lower to the "low" height after you park, but it isn't as dramatic as the loading height in an X5/X7.



From what I heard the reason why some features are on higher engines only is because they aren't able to get AS MANY of those parts as they want, so they offer them on bigger engine models as a way of cutting down on the pool of potential builds that request them. Smaller pool of builds means lower likelihood of orders with them which means greater likelihood they'll be able to fill every request for them.




Just to 100% clarify: heated front seats are standard. Radiant Heating gives you heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, heated front arm rests, heating elements in all 4 doors, and heating elements on the underside of the dashboard. The benefits from what I've been told are quicker/more even heating and using less energy to do it.



Not having leather isn't a sustainability option...it's just an option. You can get SensaTec or leather (which in this case is on the level of Nappa/Merino quality), just like plenty of other models. The wool/microfiber is just an added option and forced on nobody.

Also you can remove the cargo covers in the trunk just like any other BMW with hard panels there. I'll agree it isn't as convenient as a roller cover, but if space is a concern, just remove them and leave them in your garage when you go to haul that stuff. Otherwise they won't get in your way the majority of the time the car is on the road.

Good comments, thanks.

P.S. We also live in Berks County (Sinking Spring).

[prei1978]

Originally Posted by Bird~Dawg

We'll said and I couldn't agree with this more. Safety is paramount and all season tires simply don't cut it in regions with cold winter temps and snow. Performance summer tires are better in warm weather, and winter tires blow all seasons away in winter. From a convenience perspective, I store my off season wheels/tires at my dealership. A few extra minutes on the way to/from the office to switch to a loaner car and grab a complimentary latte - not a huge effort. Money wise, I get a discount on my insurance for running winters, and my tires last longer since each set travels less distance per year. A set of summers plus a set of winters will last as long as two sets of "no-season" tires give or take. They're not as expensive as you might think from that perspective. But to me, the money doesn't mean anything compared to my family's safety. Winters all day.

Both comments: so true. All-season tires are the worst. People think that because they got them, they're good no matter how much snow they are driving on. I believed that for a bit until I tried to steer a 5000lb SUV on relatively new (<5000K miles) all-seasons on snow and the thing slid like a container ship.

Now I have one car that is only for summer and I only have one set of performance summer tires for it and another car that is for all seasons that I swap tires twice a year.

[Paladin1]

No, actually all-season tires aren't the worst (for winter driving). Summer tires are. Having driven both winter and all-season tires through several Midwest winters, for general all-purpose driving, good quality all-season tires are fine. Not as good as winter tires, but certainly fine in most average snow conditions up to 5 or 6 inches, driving like you should in winter, which is to say not like many idiots do when the season shifts. First, slow down. No tires will save you driving in 6 inches of snow and on ice like you do in June in mid-summer. They just won't. Second, keep plenty of following distance. You'll need it, all-season or winter tires. The overconfidence winter tires give some is like the overconfidence of many 4WD drivers - 4WD will just get you stuck in a worse place than 2WD. Third, don't drive on summer tires in the winter. Ever. Fourth, drive a car equipped for snow and cold weather. Not a 600 bhp Mustang RWD with two inches of ground clearance. Winter driving experience makes as much - or a lot more - difference than the type of tires you're sitting on. A fairly objective look:

[nosnoop]

Originally Posted by mose121

You're buying a $100k car but you don't want winter tires, which anyone in the NE should have whether they get snow or not, all because you don't won't to be bothered with having to swap keys with your dealers service dept valet pickup driver twice a year. Come on brah, priorities.

Here's another option - all weather tires.

I admit that I hate swapping tires. And those big RFTs (not in iX) with rims are HEAVY!

I use Nokian WR SUV for my X5. It works quite well in snow, though it is a bit noisier and tread wears faster than all season/winter tires. And you don't need to worry about freak early or late snow storm when you have the wrong tires. Hopefully, they would come out with sizes for the iX.

New All-Weather Tires Outperform Some Snow Tires | Consumer Reports

[Bird~Dawg]

Originally Posted by nosnoop

Here's another option - all weather tires.

I admit that I hate swapping tires. And those big RFTs (not in iX) with rims are HEAVY!

I use Nokian WR SUV for my X5. It works quite well in snow, though it is a bit noisier and tread wears faster than all season/winter tires. And you don't need to worry about freak early or late snow storm when you have the wrong tires. Hopefully, they would come out with sizes for the iX.

New All-Weather Tires Outperform Some Snow Tires | Consumer Reports

Re tires: any given driver can use superior judgement to adapt their driving to the road conditions. That's in your control. A little patch of ice, however, and that goes out the window. And then are the other drivers you share the road with who may not be so sensible. When the other guy puts you in a situation, the slightly shorter stopping distance or marginally better handling afforded by winter tires might make the difference. In a jackpot situation, how much would that shorter stopping distance be worth? Maybe everything. Sure, you may drive through countless winters on all season tires and not have any issue. I've done it myself. Hopefully you never need the extra bit of grip from winter tires, but every now and then shit happens. And while all weather tires may perform better than some winter tires, they don't perform better than good winter tires. It amazes me that people in locations with winter driving conditions will spend hours researching whether they should get crystal buttons but think that swapping tires twice a year for measurably better safety and performance isn't worth their time. How much effort is it, really, to get tires swapped twice a year?

[Bird~Dawg]

Two different all season tires vs an all weather and a winter tire in cold temperatures on snow. Acceleration and braking. Even braking from only 25 mph, the stopping distance differences are significant.

[nosnoop]

Originally Posted by Bird~Dawg

Two different all season tires vs an all weather and a winter tire in cold temperatures on snow. Acceleration and braking. Even braking from only 25 mph, the stopping distance differences are significant.

You mentioned that not all winter tires are equal.
Similarly, not all "all weather" tires are equal either.

The best winter tires would probably still perform better.
But I am comfortable with it as long as one knows the limitation.

Even for winter tires, the winter performance would deteriorate quite a bit even at half tread wear, well before most people would consider replacing the tires. And you can't be driving with brand new tires every season. You just have to drive within the limits of the tires.

The argument is moot for the iX as we have very limited choice of tires to choose from.

[The BOB]

Originally Posted by Bird~Dawg

Phytonic Blue, but we have changed our minds a few times so this may change

Sport package - the gloss black bottom bits do look better IMHO and I like the tail light lenses better too

22" wheels, likely the 1021 Multicolor - I always do a seasonal winter tire swap (Canadian winter!) so the performance tires work for me

Black Sensatec - we're leasing this time due to the rapidly changing tech landscape and the sensatec looks and feels pretty good - if we were buying would likely go Amido leather

Premium enhanced package with parking assistant pro, soft close, heat package, drive recorder, comfort access, sky lounge roof, MF seats, HUD, wireless phone charging…

Universal garage door opener (optional here!)

Black trim, just don't like the look of titanium bronze - gives me flashbacks to old Lexus gold badges…

Driving assistant professional with gesture control

Skipping the ventilated seats - the fan noise bugs me

Skipping the wood/crystal bling bits (stand alone option here)

Skipping B&W - the IX HK sounds really good (better than my current X5's HK) and the BW, although definitely better sounding in back to back testing, is just not worth the extra $$ to me

We get the adaptive air suspension, 4WS package as standard kit on the IX 50 here but I otherwise would have included it - I consider it a must have

I'm on the fence about the Laser headlights - trying to find out if the base "Full LED" headlights have the cornering lamps and adaptive/matrix features, i.e. is the laser light package just an upgrade to the high beam or is it more than that?

I have "Full LED" on my iX40 - no cornering lamps or matrix feature

[Bird~Dawg]

Originally Posted by The BOB

I have "Full LED" on my iX40 - no cornering lamps or matrix feature

Thanks for the info. My SA didn't have a clue. Looks like I'm adding laser lights to my build. I'm sure there's a Dr. Evil joke or two to be made involving "lasers" and such, so that's a bonus…

[LittleJoe]

iX in Sophisto Grey

[Seaford]

Personally I wouldn’t order any bmw with cloth upholstery as I think it will be viewed as a negative at resale time.

And I will never, ever have a black car again…looks amazing when clean but too much like hard work keeping it that way.

[cinoh2000]

I've been trying to make sense of the Parking Assistant options on the iX (US spec) out of what looked like inconsistent info. Here's what I've deduced so far: online configurator for xDrive50 offers Parking Assistant Plus, while on the M60 you get Parking Assistant Professional. Descriptions in the online configurator:

PLUS
"No need to fear parallel parking. Simply drive at a slow speed and the Parking Assistant Plus feature can find parking spaces on the right or left side. It offers a Surround View camera system that provides an aerial view of your vehicle, and also operates for perpendicular or parallel parking spaces. This semi-autonomous driving feature will take care of steering your car into a parking space, and the Back-up Assistant function will steer you out, while you control the speed and braking. In addition, you can get a 3D View of your vehicle and its surroundings using the My BMW App on your phone. Drive Recorder and Remote Theft Recorder are also included."
PROFESSIONAL
"The fully automated Back-up Assistant and semi-autonomous Maneuver Assistant will take care of steering your car into and out of a parking space, including acceleration, braking and shift gears. Surround View with 3D View and Panorama View, in addition to front and rear Active Park Distance Control, will aid the driver when parking manually. A 3D View of your vehicle and its surroundings is available using the My BMW App on your phone. Drive Recorder and Remote Theft Recorder are also included."

Based on those descriptions, plus the owner's manual and my own (xDrive50) build sheet, the differences appear to be:

XDRIVE50
- PDC provides visual & acoustic warnings
- Parking Assistant steers; driver accelerates and brakes
- Finds parking spaces using objects such as other cars; proximity sensors only

M60
- Active PDC provides same warnings; adds automatic braking
- Parking Assistant does steering; adds accelerating, braking
- Finds parking spaces using both objects and painted lines; proximity + cameras
- Records and performs stored maneuvers

That said, the owner's manual only discusses Assistant and Assistant Professional. It never mentions Assistant Plus, so I might be underestimating what Assistant Plus on the xDrive50 provides. I'm keeping fingers crossed because this beast will be a tight fit in my garage and I was really hoping to have the stored maneuvers feature.

[Paladin1]

Originally Posted by cinoh2000

I've been trying to make sense of the Parking Assistant options on the iX (US spec) out of what looked like inconsistent info. Here's what I've deduced so far: online configurator for xDrive50 offers Parking Assistant Plus, while on the M60 you get Parking Assistant Professional. Descriptions in the online configurator:



Based on those descriptions, plus the owner's manual and my own (xDrive50) build sheet, the differences appear to be:

XDRIVE50
- PDC provides visual & acoustic warnings
- Parking Assistant steers; driver accelerates and brakes
- Finds parking spaces using objects such as other cars; proximity sensors only

M60
- Active PDC provides same warnings; adds automatic braking
- Parking Assistant does steering; adds accelerating, braking
- Finds parking spaces using both objects and painted lines; proximity + cameras
- Records and performs stored maneuvers

That said, the owner's manual only discusses Assistant and Assistant Professional. It never mentions Assistant Plus, so I might be underestimating what Assistant Plus on the xDrive50 provides. I'm keeping fingers crossed because this beast will be a tight fit in my garage and I was really hoping to have the stored maneuvers feature.

This seems to indicate a little more autonomy in the iX40/50 as far as automated parking maneuvers:

[hugo_nz]

Originally Posted by cinoh2000

I've been trying to make sense of the Parking Assistant options on the iX (US spec) out of what looked like inconsistent info. Here's what I've deduced so far: online configurator for xDrive50 offers Parking Assistant Plus, while on the M60 you get Parking Assistant Professional. Descriptions in the online configurator:



Based on those descriptions, plus the owner's manual and my own (xDrive50) build sheet, the differences appear to be:

XDRIVE50
- PDC provides visual & acoustic warnings
- Parking Assistant steers; driver accelerates and brakes
- Finds parking spaces using objects such as other cars; proximity sensors only

M60
- Active PDC provides same warnings; adds automatic braking
- Parking Assistant does steering; adds accelerating, braking
- Finds parking spaces using both objects and painted lines; proximity + cameras
- Records and performs stored maneuvers

That said, the owner's manual only discusses Assistant and Assistant Professional. It never mentions Assistant Plus, so I might be underestimating what Assistant Plus on the xDrive50 provides. I'm keeping fingers crossed because this beast will be a tight fit in my garage and I was really hoping to have the stored maneuvers feature.

As far as I could tell from the BMW press material the only major difference between Plus and Pro is that Pro can record stored parking manoeuvres where plus cannot.