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      07-03-2012, 01:50 PM   #45
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Maybe it's because I didn't have any real luxury/premium car before this one (Rainier was the closest I guess), but absolutely everything in this car was better than what I've ever had.

Or maybe it's because NO OTHER SUV in the same price range had the sweet N55 + 8 speed that small quirks I couldn't care about.

Yeah some of the other competitors had better packages... but holy hell were they a bore to drive.

Unless you're buying a custom made car, there's always going to be disappointments... can't mass produce and make everybody perfectly happy.

13 months - ~18000KMs - all smiles
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      07-16-2012, 12:25 AM   #46
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No unlock button in side door.
Can't open the garage door unless you press the start button.
Lack of storage.
Too many functions to learn.
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      07-18-2012, 05:35 PM   #47
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too sporty and it's gotten me two tickets. But hey, it was fun while it lasted!
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      07-19-2012, 08:38 AM   #48
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As I'm nearing a full year with the car (plus the six months before that), I'm reflecting on how absolutely infuriating and terrible both of my X3's have been. This is a terrible excuse for a German car. It's all just "off," and everything is falling apart. Rattles galore and my steering rack has been replaced twice. My brakes wore out last week and the car has only 13,000 miles. My tires have weird wear on the outside in front (they have less miles on them). My steering squeaks and my suspension clunks and hops. The run flats seem to have grown increasingly stiff. The AC makes a weird hiss with all the windows closed during hard acceleration (I know it's turbo whistle related but it shouldn't affect my AC). Oh and the paint is so cheap and fragile. I was able to carve a tiny little dent in the paint with my fingernail! The stitching on my sport seats came unraveled so they had to replace my seat cover, but they did such a horrible job that the seat now has some irregular ruching. Every time I get in the car, the seat creaks and clicks. Every time I brake hard, it makes the same noise.

The only thing I like about this car these days is the speed and the sound with the windows open.
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      07-19-2012, 08:53 AM   #49
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Quote:
Originally Posted by juddholland View Post
This is a terrible excuse for a German car.
+1
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      07-19-2012, 08:53 AM   #50
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich4 View Post
My biggest disappointment (European 2.0d auto) is the drive experience – the feel of driving is not what I had in previous BMW models with responsive steering and throttle (320d, 325i). I put it down to the introduction of the eco/comfort/sport configuration, where the ‘sport’ setting is what should be the default setting (giving the normal or standard feel as in previous cars, before introduction of electronic controls i.e. the norm), and comfort mode is actually a dumbing down of the car’s capabilities bringing in a reduced (vague)steering feel, a lag in accelerator response, and elimination of engine back pressure when throttle is released; as for Eco mode (sleep mode), forget it. Unfortunately a short test drive before placing an order, isn’t sufficient to make one aware of some of the short comings, the more so as at the time demo cars were few and far between. In order to enjoy it I have it in sport mode the whole time.
Oh well, didn't you expect such differences with a 4x4 "cube-form" heavier car? I believe that considering the massive amount of weight with respect to my previous 320d, adding the all-wheel drive, plus such a penalizing form factor for aerodynamics, the car still has a lot of stamina. You should have gone for the 3.0d!
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      07-19-2012, 12:38 PM   #51
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Quote:
Originally Posted by juddholland View Post
As I'm nearing a full year with the car (plus the six months before that), I'm reflecting on how absolutely infuriating and terrible both of my X3's have been. This is a terrible excuse for a German car. It's all just "off," and everything is falling apart. Rattles galore and my steering rack has been replaced twice. My brakes wore out last week and the car has only 13,000 miles. My tires have weird wear on the outside in front (they have less miles on them). My steering squeaks and my suspension clunks and hops. The run flats seem to have grown increasingly stiff. The AC makes a weird hiss with all the windows closed during hard acceleration (I know it's turbo whistle related but it shouldn't affect my AC). Oh and the paint is so cheap and fragile. I was able to carve a tiny little dent in the paint with my fingernail! The stitching on my sport seats came unraveled so they had to replace my seat cover, but they did such a horrible job that the seat now has some irregular ruching. Every time I get in the car, the seat creaks and clicks. Every time I brake hard, it makes the same noise.

The only thing I like about this car these days is the speed and the sound with the windows open.
Damn!
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      07-19-2012, 12:54 PM   #52
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Quote:
Originally Posted by juddholland View Post
As I'm nearing a full year with the car (plus the six months before that), I'm reflecting on how absolutely infuriating and terrible both of my X3's have been. This is a terrible excuse for a German car. It's all just "off," and everything is falling apart. Rattles galore and my steering rack has been replaced twice. My brakes wore out last week and the car has only 13,000 miles. My tires have weird wear on the outside in front (they have less miles on them). My steering squeaks and my suspension clunks and hops. The run flats seem to have grown increasingly stiff. The AC makes a weird hiss with all the windows closed during hard acceleration (I know it's turbo whistle related but it shouldn't affect my AC). Oh and the paint is so cheap and fragile. I was able to carve a tiny little dent in the paint with my fingernail! The stitching on my sport seats came unraveled so they had to replace my seat cover, but they did such a horrible job that the seat now has some irregular ruching. Every time I get in the car, the seat creaks and clicks. Every time I brake hard, it makes the same noise.

The only thing I like about this car these days is the speed and the sound with the windows open.
Judd! What a nightmare. Can't blame you given what has happened. It's a far cry from your excellent twilight photos when you were once a very proud owner of a brand new X3. Been all downhill ever since. I haven't experienced any of the same issues except for paintwork which is dreadful: just incredibly fragile. Every time I wash/wax/polish I find more flakes, and not in places you might expect them. Very frustrating.

Would never switch my X3 for a Q5 though. Still very happy with it overall. Would I get an X5 next time instead? Maybe but not the current model as it looks badly dated from the rear and anyone can steal one with a blank key and a £100 kit from ebay
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      07-19-2012, 12:57 PM   #53
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I would be remiss not to link to this thread in the interest of keeping a balanced view

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=610609
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      07-19-2012, 12:59 PM   #54
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Quote:
Originally Posted by inamik75 View Post
Damn!
Any nearer ordering inamik? Is the exchange rate more favourable? You'll benefit from the upgraded nav from April 2013
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      07-19-2012, 05:31 PM   #55
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alligator69 View Post
Oh well, didn't you expect such differences with a 4x4 "cube-form" heavier car? I believe that considering the massive amount of weight with respect to my previous 320d, adding the all-wheel drive, plus such a penalizing form factor for aerodynamics, the car still has a lot of stamina. You should have gone for the 3.0d!
You are right, I would have liked the extra power but at the time there were no 3.0d demonstrators and if there were it would have been hard to justify the additional cost so 2.0d was my choice. Anyway, that would not have solved the problems mentioned which are unconnected with engine size or weight of car, but purely the ‘driveability’ factor mainly the vague steering and throttle lag to name just two.
I put the blame on the introduction of DPC - Drive Performance Control coming in as a standard fitment effective from production week 14 – 1st April – ha, ha, (April fools) which dumbed down certain parameters and therefore the normal feeling of the car, from what I assume was available before that on earlier models, when there was no comfort/sport/eco mode fitted as standard. I am quite satisfied with the performance aspects of the 2.0d, and yes, 3.0d would have been nice, but the ‘default’ feel of the car should be what one now gets in sport mode, and not a vague and aimless wondering about that the so-called comfort mode gives.
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      07-19-2012, 06:01 PM   #56
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I'll add to that, Rich.

What I experience with this Dynamic Drive Control (though my car is a 2011 with DHP) is that the NORMAL mode (2011 version of COMFORT) is neither normal nor comfortable. These adaptive suspensions are nice sometimes, but switching the car into SPORT chassis really doesn't affect the comfort, rather it affects the rebound damping of the suspension. The impact harshness is the same whether in SPORT or NORMAL/COMFORT. So what it's really doing is changing the number of oscillations the springs have to complete in order to level the car with the road after completing a turn or coming to a stop. This means that in SPORT, any cargo that isn't strapped down is more likely to move about the trunk/backseat. What this does for the driver is create a more confidence inspiring experience by way of a pitchier ride and a more connected, focused, nimbler feel. The word COMFORT is used here to suggest a more relaxed driving experience, but the use of the word is about as effective as a placebo pill.
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      07-19-2012, 07:25 PM   #57
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Quote:
Originally Posted by juddholland View Post
I'll add to that, Rich.

...................................... What this does for the driver is create a more confidence inspiring experience by way of a pitchier ride and a more connected, focused, nimbler feel. The word COMFORT is used here to suggest a more relaxed driving experience, but the use of the word is about as effective as a placebo pill.
Juddholland – thanks for the illuminating explanation, as I was beginning to think maybe I was missing something by not having taken the DHP (or at least Variable Damper Control) option, but seems not. My gripe is mainly to do with the imprecise steering feel, and delayed (jumpy) throttle, which I did not expect from a high-end OEM. My previous BMs and Audi Avant provided a great driving feel. In my naivety, I expected the sports mode to give me something extra, (and therefore better?) and certainly not at the expense of an inferior drive experience which I now get in 'comfort' mode.
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      07-20-2012, 03:19 AM   #58
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I don't have dynamic drive control normal/sport/sport+ and I'm not sure on the difference between Normal mode and my sports suspension/servo setup but a lot of people say that they always drive in Sport and wish they could default the car to Sport so that they didn't have to switch to Sport mode each time they got in. They should give people the option to have a permanent or default sport setting and work on the steering feedback. 17" alloys and VDC and VSS in Normal mode are probably the "worst" combination in terms of steering feedback.

On the general steering feel thing, it's there for the mass market. Most people don't want to be battling with the steering wheel in a big heavy vehicle. The electronic steering means anyone can drive it with ease. Hence the large proportion of women that drive the latest X5.
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      07-20-2012, 05:09 AM   #59
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Re DHP I'd suggest that simply changing damper rates is not very smart. Spring, anti-roll and damper rates all related and need to be optimised together, just changing one variable is asking for trouble.
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Last edited by clivem2; 07-20-2012 at 05:15 AM..
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      07-20-2012, 06:43 AM   #60
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich4 View Post
Anyway, that would not have solved the problems mentioned which are unconnected with engine size or weight of car, but purely the ‘driveability’ factor mainly the vague steering and throttle lag to name just two.
Lag is annoying, I agree. I bet there might be sonn or late some SW fix, 'cause if you use the car in "SPORT" mode the lag is more or less gone. The setting for the normal driving mode is a bit too loose.

What surprises me is the feeling with steering. I find my car quite stiff and precise. When I bought it the dealer convinced me to get the dynamic steering (whatever you call it, sorry, I don't know how it's called in english) and at the end I'm pretty satisfied. Could yours be a problem of tyres? I have 18' Runflat and feel the wheels are there where I drive them. Try to change tyres pressure within the limits and see if there's any result.
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      07-20-2012, 08:53 AM   #61
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had had my 2.0d for almost 10 months doing 9000 miles so far... disappointments mainly wind/traffic noise and this whining noise in the steering wheel when i turn the wheel or take my foot off the gas at low speeds (have to get that checked out soon).. but the biggest is not driving it nearly as much as i would like.. cos the other car would feel neglected...

do i prefer it to my z4 or E60? should i have gotten an F10 instead? maybe but for now, it suits my needs in terms of space and the low maintenance...
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      07-20-2012, 08:55 AM   #62
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alligator69 View Post
............... Try to change tyres pressure within the limits and see if there's any result.
Mine are standard 17” non runflat as I didn’t want a harsh ride (remember this is the UK and road surfaces are near third-world status ) and as you suggest, I have yet to try boosting pressure by 4-6lbs (say 0.3-0.4bar) over the recommended.

I have fixed a meeting with the workshop manager to discuss the steering/throttle problems which theoretically could be fixed by adjusting electronic settings but fully expect them to deny that its possible, and that its a ‘design feature’. In hindsight, I could have investigated the servotronic or the variable sports steering options when ordering, but all I wanted was the road feel I had in previous cars, not something special.

Presumably, as you have a pre-April car, you do not have the Drive Performance Control as it was not available on the 2.0d as a stand alone feature. If so, your drive-feel should be good, and you don’t suffer the ‘comfort’ mode syndrome?
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      07-20-2012, 04:28 PM   #63
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The A/C on the 2013 X3 is TERRIBLE!
Dealer says everything checks out fine - and told me the problem was the hot summer we are having in NC!

Junk rental cars cool down quicker than a $50K+ BMW...REALLY!
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      07-20-2012, 05:06 PM   #64
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There's a lot of misunderstanding around on how the A/C works on the X3.

When in auto the fan adjustment means the max limit of fan speed you desire. It's clear that if you choose the first bar, the air will very gently flow and very slowly lower temperatures in the car. If you leave it to the max, it will blow cool air all around and cool the car down faster. Interesting also the way you can play with the wheel in the centre dashboard, that allows you to either get the coldest air in the face or to slightly reduce the freeze if you feel air to your face is a bit too cold.
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      07-20-2012, 05:17 PM   #65
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Garage List
Hi all
December 2011 build. Done 24,000km.

Did not go for any of the expensive options, only the Zenion head lights.

Fine the steering excellent. Move it 5mm and get a result!

Paint no problems. The jacking point rubbers keep falling out!!

General handling as good as anything I have ever driven, still would like to run on non run flats.

Warranty from BMW is terrible, the dealer we purchased it from had to sort a problem at his expense!! BMW warranty as good as any back street car shark!!

KF
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      07-20-2012, 09:46 PM   #66
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Navigation Lacking

Love my 2011 X3, but navigation directions are very limited. "Turn left in 500 yards", "turn right at the end of the road". My 2003 Infinity FX navigation would tell me street names. I'm hoping it's a setting I'm not aware...I just can't believe that my 2003 FX was more advanced
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