[ccunningham_iX3]

I recently took delivery of a 2024 iX3. I am loving the car, and honestly don't think I will ever go back to petrol.

The Adaptive M- Suspension is tucked behind a £399 paywall in the UK. Everything else comes standard on the car. But I have no way of knowing if it is worth the cash outlay. On the current suspension set up, is the car defaulting to a mid point between comfort and sporty? I would quite like the ability to make the ride more smooth, but not sure how much turning on the adaptive M Suspension will make a differnce on this specific car.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

[Zerouali]

My understanding is that it doesn’t change the level of comfort/sport etc. it’s just that it gives you the option to select the level of suspension independent of the drive mode you are in. So you could have comfort suspension in sport drive mode etc.

[GDEvans]

I've had my iX3 for 2.5 years now. Personally I don't see the point of it in a vehicle of this type. Yes they are fairly swift in a straight line, but no changes to the suspension are going to significantly change the handling.

My previous cars were a Porsche Boxster S and two Audi S3. The Boxster predated such features. But the adaptive suspension on the S3 made a big difference to both comfort and handling. But it a fairly low car with a low centre of gravity, as opposed to an SUV with a much higher centre of gravity.

[ccunningham_iX3]

Aye, these were my thoughts. I am currently not seeing the point unless it makes a real difference. The car is still supremely fun to drive, especially around the country lanes.

[JimmyTheHand]

Originally Posted by GDEvans

The Boxster predated such features.

Citroën had active suspension XM back in the early 90s and they had the Activa system around 94/95 - both before Boxster was released.

[ThreeXi]

Hello,

In my opinion it think it is worth buying, but I’m glad I waited for when BMW put the M Adaptive Suspension on sale so it was about £300 instead of £399.

I do feel a difference in comfort, it’s subtle though, the change I felt is almost like front and rear wheels are talking to each other, the other change being able to alter the suspension setting in Sport and Eco-Pro modes.

Many thanks,

[GDEvans]

Originally Posted by JimmyTheHand

Citroën had active suspension XM back in the early 90s and they had the Activa system around 94/95 - both before Boxster was released.

My Boxster predated such features in the Porsche Boxster lineup.

[GaSelle]

I just got it the other day. It installs as a software update, the car informs you during the download and activation.

With the Adaptive Suspension comes two new options:
Both "Sport" and "Eco Pro" now has settings to set the suspension in either "Sport" or "Comfort" in the "Sport Individual" and "Eco Pro Individual" modes.

Choosing "Sport" makes the suspension noticeably stiffer/harder and there is less roll in the car when taking corners, roundabouts etc. and the road can be felt a lot more.

If it´s worth it has to be individual. I got it for free (compensation for something else, long story) - don´t think I would pay £399 for it. Wait untill Black Friday, there is usually a sale with a discount.

[krchong1]

Originally Posted by GaSelle

I just got it the other day. It installs as a software update, the car informs you during the download and activation.

With the Adaptive Suspension comes two new options:
Both "Sport" and "Eco Pro" now has settings to set the suspension in either "Sport" or "Comfort" in the "Sport Individual" and "Eco Pro Individual" modes.

Choosing "Sport" makes the suspension noticeably stiffer/harder and there is less roll in the car when taking corners, roundabouts etc. and the road can be felt a lot more.

If it´s worth it has to be individual. I got it for free (compensation for something else, long story) - don´t think I would pay £399 for it. Wait untill Black Friday, there is usually a sale with a discount.

Just came across this discussion.

a) There's a recent discount of 10% on the M Adaptive suspension from where I come from. Is the additional 'Comfort' level significant? My pet peeves are the numerous potholes and speed bumps in my county.

b) Will it be possible to 'code' it with a OBD adapter and Bimmercode?


Thanks in advance...

[GDEvans]

Originally Posted by krchong1

a) There's a recent discount of 10% on the M Adaptive suspension from where I come from. Is the additional 'Comfort' level significant? My pet peeves are the numerous potholes and speed bumps in my county.

There have been various discussion of this both here and on the standard X3 page.

What I have not been able to work out - there have been opinions both ways - is where the Non-Adaptive suspension sits in the range from Adaptive Comfort to Adaptive Sport. Clearly it must be somewhere in that range, as there are no hardware changes with this upgrade. There are three possibilities:

• NON-ADAPTIVE = ADAPTIVE COMFORT. The adaptive suspension will be stiffer in Sport mode. Consequently the ride will be just as firm in Comfort mode (no increased comfort). It is my assumption that this is what happens when you add the Adaptive - it adds a stiffer Sport mode.
• NON-ADAPTIVE = ADAPTIVE SPORT. There will be no increase in stiffness in sport mode, but Comfort will be more comfortable.
• NON-ADAPTIVE = SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE. Comfort will give a softer ride, and Sport will give a stiffer ride.

[ThreeXi]

Hello,

The thing is though, the iX3 does have adaptive suspension as standard doesn’t it, for me it was a challenge to find out what the difference is between that and the M adaptive.

The adverts and help from previous posts on this forum highlight that you can change the settings for suspension so you can have comfort damping with the motors in sport mode for example which you couldn’t have before.

We all feel suspension slightly differently, I’ve always felt that sport is slightly stiffer and comfort is slightly more soft, I don’t know the technical term but it also seems like the front and rear axles are talking to each other, best example I can give is when I drive over the speed bumps in a local car park, the rear moved as much as the front, but now it feels like the back of the car is “prepared” for what it’s about to drive over if that makes sense? Of course, it could be my mind playing tricks on me of course, because it cost me £300 to buy!

Be interesting to hear other people’s thoughts.

Many thanks,