[hinckley]

After driving mostly BMW sedans and coupes since the mid-80s, my 2020 X4 M40i is my first SUV and my first automatic transmission vehicle – ever! My MT 911 will continue to be my DD and the X4 will be mainly an airport/beach/guest car, and I’m sure there are a few road trips in its future. And for those purposes, it fits the bill exactly. But I never expected an SUV to be so much fun too.

I waited for the MY20 hoping the uber-important (to me) merino leather interior would migrate down to the less expensive X3. It didn’t as we all know, but the wait brought an MY20 X4 with so many small changes that it added up to an LCI Lite imo. The M steering wheel (dah!), updated engine, upgraded tech, and carbon fiber trim (a real surprise) made the wait a no-brainer. I ordered in early-August. The car was one of the first M40i’s produced the first week of September, and I did a PCD in late-September.

Specs: Alpine White exterior, Fiona Red merino leather interior, carbon fiber trim, 21" Style 718 wheels, driving assistance package, executive package, M Sport differential, space-saver spare, roof rails in Shadowline, HK sound, and wireless charging. To that I’ve added H&R lowering springs and 15mm spacers, full cerium-delete, window tints, Radenso radar- and ALP laser-detection, M Performance graphics (+5 hp, lol), and a bunch of iD7 coding (awesome working with the codemybimmer guys).

PCD: I’ve done six EDs (my cars and friends’ cars). This was my first PCD and it’s completely different and equally fun. Driving around Europe in your own BMW is an amazing experience. Driving other people’s BMWs around race tracks and terrain courses is just wild. It’s incredibly professionally organized and they stuff a lot of activity into a short period of time. Excluding lunch and vehicle delivery, the actual events only take about five hours. But they’re so exhilarating and adrenalin-packed that you’re wiped out by the end. Honestly, any enthusiast within a thousand miles can do a PCD over a long weekend – fly to Spartanburg on a Thursday night, do a Friday PCD and drive home by Sunday night. That much fun for free is just a crime to miss.

Performance: So far, all of my driving has been highways and around town. I’ve recently moved to Florida and everything here is flat and straight. So it’ll be pretty much impossible for me to ever know the true handling capabilities of the car (the M Sport diff was probably wasted money ). However even here, the adaptive M suspension is absolutely essential imo and makes a huge difference depending on how and where you’re driving. The engine and acceleration are amazing, especially for this type of vehicle. The growl and burbles are fantastic (a bit boy-racer, but it puts a smile on my face). But it’s the AT that’s the greatest standout for me – and this from a +40-year MT guy. In Sport Plus especially, the AT is crazy aggressive, down-shifting as quickly or quicker than I would with an MT. I’ve simply never experienced that. Around town, the Sport Plus transmission mode is actually too aggressive and can be pretty jerky. So I’ve set my Sport Individual setting for town driving with the AT set to Comfort. Otherwise, I’m Sport Plus all the way. I really believe that unless you jump up to an X3/4 M (which may be overly harsh for a DD), there’s simply no other small SUV on the market that performs like the M40i.

Exterior: Coming from a lifetime of driving cars, I was admittedly hesitant about buying a SUV. And let’s face it, the X4 is . . . ahh . . . “oddly” shaped. So I had prepared myself when I took delivery in Spartanburg. I wasn’t disappointed, but I wasn’t overwhelmed either. I really, really dislike the cerium bits on BMW’s M Performance models and the wheel gap is of course what it is in vehicles like this. But with a cerium-delete, the lowering springs and the spacers, the X4 has almost been transformed into a proper little Euro estate. When I walked into the shop to pick up the car after the mods were completed, it was like taking delivery all over again. But this time, I was overwhelmed. Btw, the 21s look like properly aggressive 21s now. They’re no longer lost in those gaping wheel arches.

Interior: Comfort is great for four adults. I don’t like large vehicles and I don’t need to carry a hockey team to the rink. So the interior size is Goldilocks just right for me. But the standout is the Fiona Red merino with carbon fiber trim. It’s really sporty looking, and more important, it really lifts whole luxury quotient of the interior. If you can live with a slightly smaller boot and a slightly lighter wallet, the X4 is the better choice just to get the Fiona Red interior imo. On the flip side, I’m disappointed that the dash and door-tops aren’t leather. What’s there is supposed to be SensaTec, but it’s got a fake grain that looks very cheap, especially next to the merino seats. Out back, rear seat room is only slightly less than the X3, and rear seat entry really is no problem. A couple of other comparisons to the X3 – the X4 does not have a rear window wiper like the X3, and it only has a rear fold-down headrest in the center position, as opposed to all three positions in the X3. That’s truly baffling to me considering the X4’s more challenging rear visibility. Even more baffling - unlike the X3, the X4 has NO grab handles at ANY seating position. Wtf BMW? This is supposed to be your sporty SUV. Also, I’m questioning the wisdom of the space-saver spare. Unlike the X3, the X4’s cargo area floor is level with the load lip even with a space-saver. That’s a good thing. However, even in the X4, the spare does take away a couple of inches of height in an already reduced cargo area. Time will tell whether I’ll miss those inches.

Tech: I’m a big ole wonk and imo, BMW’s tech is the best in the industry – by far. And as I’ve said, MY20 brought a bunch of small changes that add up to a major upgrade. The center display has a new higher res screen and the customizable iDrive 7 home page is a really nice touch. HUD (a must-have option imo) has a bunch of small enhancements – a cleaner design, a revised nav display with a very helpful moving arrow as you approach intersections, and a two-line radio list that includes station name, artist, and song title. Live Cockpit Pro? It’s fine imo. For whatever reason, BMW just doesn’t do digital dashes well (Audi takes first place there). And of course, the counter-rotating tach is dumb. But who cares? It’s an AT! Who’s looking at the tach?? Btw, there’s a new tach display in the HUD if you really want one. I may think differently if this was an MT, but in the X3/4, Live Cockpit Pro is just a non-event imo. And with the coded Alpina display, it’s really beautiful.

CarPlay is my only tech complaint. The guy doing my PCD delivery said that they say CarPlay takes over Maps, Music and Messaging. And that just pisses me off. Yes, it’s really nice to have the full screen and I love Waze up in the central display. But iDrive nav is so well integrated into the car that I can’t resist using it. And for some totally inexplicable reason, iDrive nav is disabled if CarPlay is turned on (even if it’s not being used). So I can’t have Waze in the central display for police notifications while iDrive nav is running and displayed in HUD. And because iDrive text messages are disabled, you’re forced to use CarPlay reading texts thru the speakers. So . . . Waze remains running on my iPhone, I read text messages thru iDrive in the central display, and BMW loses future CarPlay subscription fees from me. Dumb.

I hate ending with that negative note, because the X4 M40i is just a great vehicle. And I’ve made this one mine, which makes me very happy.

Now, the obligatory pics (part 1) . . .

[hinckley]

Pics (part 2) . . .

[Rbrown]

Thanks - great review.

👍

[ContactPatch]

Enjoyed your review, great looking car, even better with the mods you did!

[Douggie]

Thanks for the review!

[sinbad4]

Originally Posted by hinckley

CarPlay is my only tech complaint. The guy doing my PCD delivery said that they say CarPlay takes over Maps, Music and Messaging....

First, nice ride, nice write up. I also waited and received my X3 a few days after you!

I actually love CarPlay. Full screen without hacking is great!

To be clear, one can use CarPlay and BMW Maps at the same time. I don't have any issue using BMW maps while CarPlay is connected. After reading your post I went and tested.

You can absolutely use Waze and BMW Navigation at the same time. However, you cannot have directions to a destination displayed on both at the same time. Kind of weird. I would guess that's because only one app (BMW Nav or CP Waze) can have access to the Guidance Audio at a time. Much like you cannot Play a CarPlay Podcast while playing FM Radio at the same time.

I put a video up showing 2020 BMW HUD & Instrument Cluster with Nav running while Waze is also running. Waze does not have a destination, but does show current condition - auto zooming in and out as it thinks situation requires. Don't know if that can be set to a static wider view or not.

An aside: Apple iOS 13 CarPlay (recently released) allows for multiple displays to be used. So, BMW can allow Waze Maps (or Google or Apple Maps) to be displayed in the Instrument Cluster and HUD with later updates. Since BMW claims it required $$ CarPlay subscription to support CarPlay app development, they'd better give us an update in the near future to support this multi screen option.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by sinbad4

To be clear, one can use CarPlay and BMW Maps at the same time. I don't have any issue using BMW maps while CarPlay is connected. After reading your post I went and tested.

You can absolutely use Waze and BMW Navigation at the same time. However, you cannot have directions to a destination displayed on both at the same time. Kind of weird. I would guess that's because only one app (BMW Nav or CP Waze) can have access to the Guidance Audio at a time. Much like you cannot Play a CarPlay Podcast while playing FM Radio at the same time.

sinbad, thanks for this. What you showed in the vid is exactly what I was trying to do, but I got an error message when I tried to access iDrive nav. I'll set up CarPlay again and give it a try. One question - can you have spoken Waze alerts playing thru the car's speakers while using iDrive nav?

[2045]

Nice write up!

How's the ride with H&R springs? Every car in the past that I had with H&R were just horrible in ride quality. They are always more aggressive than others like Eibach etc., but offers the most drop of course. I do like the look but had the mind set on ACS springs made by Eibach.

[suby01]

Great write up. Thanks for sharing.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by sinbad4

To be clear, one can use CarPlay and BMW Maps at the same time. I don't have any issue using BMW maps while CarPlay is connected. After reading your post I went and tested.

Well I'll be damned! You are correct (your video evidence is hard to disprove ). And this morning, I figured out that I had stumbled over an odd set of circumstances that led me to believe otherwise . . .

At some point on my way home from PCD, I used a spoken command that I've used for years in my BMWs - "Go Home". But the new X4 responded to that command by saying, "function not available since CarPlay is active." So since the PCD guys had just told me that CarPlay takes over "Maps, Music and Messaging," I just assumed that iDrive nav and CarPlay were not compatible. I was bummed and disabled it.

With CarPlay disabled (and without even thinking about CarPlay), I later learned that the old command of "Go Home" no longer works with iD7 (it worked fine in my MY18 iD6 M4). But I did get "Go Home" to work in the X4 by adding a contact called "Home". So what did I figure out this morning? . . . When saying "Go Home," iD7 is looking for a contact, not the nav address. And since CarPlay takes over contacts, "the function is not available since CarPlay is active." Eureka!

I take back everything I said about CarPlay now! I've got everything I need. Thanks sinbad.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by 2045

Nice write up! How's the ride with H&R springs?

Thank you. I have no problem with the ride after the H&R install. It's definitely firmer, but not too much by any means (but remember that my DD is a 911). And if you change the damper setting to Comfort, there's zero issues at all.

[dubveex3]

hinckley -- great write up! Your car looked sharp at PCD, and even better now.

[newbimmerguy]

I'm also guessing that the 2020 X3 M40i and X4 M40i have the updated 3rd Gen ZF 8HP51 transmission, but I haven't found any confirmation yet.


So far every other car that's moved to the B58 TU1 engine has also switched from the 2nd gen ZF 8HP50 transmission to the 8HP51. (New M340is and the 2020 Supras use the TU1 Engine + ZF 8HP51 transmission.) The 8HP51 has a wider gear ratio spread with a slightly taller (torquier) 1st-4th gear with 5-8 gears the same as the 8HP50. They're supposed to bring with them a 2.5% increase in fuel economy and have "revised hydraulics"; not clear whether that means less HP lost to running the pump or whether that means an increased ability to hold high pressure / more torque in Sport / Sport + mode or what that's supposed to mean in practice.


On the downside, I don't think anyone has cracked the TCU on the 8HP51s yet, so there's no tunes available for them, AFAIK.


Adam

[Max Well]

Thanks for your in-depth review and great images! Congratulations!

[Alias1431]

Originally Posted by newbimmerguy

I'm also guessing that the 2020 X3 M40i and X4 M40i have the updated 3rd Gen ZF 8HP51 transmission, but I haven't found any confirmation yet.


So far every other car that's moved to the B58 TU1 engine has also switched from the 2nd gen ZF 8HP50 transmission to the 8HP51. (New M340is and the 2020 Supras use the TU1 Engine + ZF 8HP51 transmission.) The 8HP51 has a wider gear ratio spread with a slightly taller (torquier) 1st-4th gear with 5-8 gears the same as the 8HP50. They're supposed to bring with them a 2.5% increase in fuel economy and have "revised hydraulics"; not clear whether that means less HP lost to running the pump or whether that means an increased ability to hold high pressure / more torque in Sport / Sport + mode or what that's supposed to mean in practice.


On the downside, I don't think anyone has cracked the TCU on the 8HP51s yet, so there's no tunes available for them, AFAIK.


Adam

What 8HP50 tune would you recommend, and why would it not be considered redundant with an ECU flash?

[newbimmerguy]

Originally Posted by Alias1431

What 8HP50 tune would you recommend, and why would it not be considered redundant with an ECU flash?

AFAIK, these guys are the leaders, everyone seems to be waiting on them to get a tune for the Supra's 8HP51: https://www.xhpflashtool.com/


-Why would it not be considered redundant with an ECU Flash? -Because an ECU flash only flashes the engine ECU, not the transmission.

When you start pushing the torque you'll hit the stock torque limiters in the 8HP50 transmissions and the shifting will get weird and laggy at WOT. -If you look at Mission Performance's Flashes, they won't sell you more than their Stage 2 tune until you get a TCU tune for the transmission. Then they'll give you their Stage 2.5 ECU Tune or you can go higher with aftermarket turbos.


Adam

[Alias1431]

Would I benefit from a TCU tune if only doing a stage 1 ECU tune? Stage 2?

[Lotus99]

hinckley Sweet ride!

I'm also looking for 15 mm spacers and black bolts, but I'm having a hard time finding them.

Where did you get yours?

PS Your Inbox is full!

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by Lotus99

hinckley Sweet ride!

I'm also looking for 15 mm spacers and black bolts, but I'm having a hard time finding them.

Where did you get yours?

PS Your Inbox is full!

I had my work done at a local authorized H&R installer and so used H&R spacers. They sourced the bolts for me as well.

Thanks for the heads up on the inbox!

[Lotus99]

Originally Posted by hinckley

I had my work done at a local authorized H&R installer and so used H&R spacers. They sourced the bolts for me as well.

Thanks for the heads up on the inbox!

Thanks, having a hard time dropping $350 for H&R spacers and bolts, so I'm looking for alternatives... Might go ECS or Turner I guess.

[STooK]

That's a seriously good looking ride! Basically looks like an X4M. The 911 looks great too and they must make a great duo. Enjoy in good health!

[freshxdough]

Originally Posted by Lotus99

Thanks, having a hard time dropping $350 for H&R spacers and bolts, so I'm looking for alternatives... Might go ECS or Turner I guess.

future classic on IND distribution have 15mm spacers and black bolts. I have two sets on my car front and rear. Great quality.