[Stan876]

Gutted!!!

Just before signing on the dotted line I finally had an Xdrive 320D Msport on overnight test drive and the standard suspension is crap. The cars has loads of grip and i wouldn't say it rolls or wallows excessively the suspension just feels cheap, crude and has no finesse. The car feels like your in a boat on calm seas you can just feel it constantly undulating slightly, it's not pleasant at all and it's also a bit crashy (Car had the 19" fitted but the Msport suspension on the 2 wheel drive test car i had previously coped no problem).

A few road tests said that the Adaptive suspension is a must have with the standard suspension so i suppose i will have to try and find a test drive of a car with it fitted. Has anyone driven a car with non Msport suspension and then one with adaptive reviews would be helpful if anyone has one?

So now i feel a bit stuffed I don't know whether to reacquaint myself with Mr Quattro (but the A4 is rubbish in other areas) or go with the 2 wheel drive.

I know most of you will say go with the two wheel drive but with boat launching on slimy slipways and genuine problems with snow on my daily commute over the pennines in Winter its not really a good option or me.

One final comment if you are going to buy an M sport Xdrive do not i repeat do not test drive a 2 wheel drive M sport first!!

[Torque of the Devil]

You were driving a car with the bog standard suspension, the Xdrive does not have M Sport suspension even if it is a M Sport model

You definitely need adaptive for Xdrive to handle decently

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by Vanguard

You were driving a car with the bog standard suspension, the Xdrive does not have M Sport suspension even if it is a M Sport model

You definitely need adaptive for Xdrive to handle decently

That's what i need to know how much does the adaptive bridge the gap between the M sport suspension and the standard.

[gtsussex]

I've driven all three and posted up about a month ago. The adaptive is MUCH better. Put it this way, I wouldn't have ordered my car otherwise and really I wouldn't sign on the line until you have tried it yourself. The real problem is finding one as they are very rare. Why BMW dealers haven't realised this I don't know - they didn't even know xDrive M Sports had standard suspension at my dealer.

Is it as good as standard M Sport suspension? Difficult. Ultimately it rolls a bit more as the springs are softer. But the damping control is vastly better and this goes a long way to resolving this.

[Torque of the Devil]

How many reasons do you need not to get Xdrive

extra weight
extra cost
poor handling

All for some perceived winter benefit which can be achieved and more so with winter wheels/tyres combo for £1500 from BMW

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by gtsussex

I've driven all three and posted up about a month ago. The adaptive is MUCH better. Put it this way, I wouldn't have ordered my car otherwise and really I wouldn't sign on the line until you have tried it yourself. The real problem is finding one as they are very rare. Why BMW dealers haven't realised this I don't know - they didn't even know xDrive M Sports had standard suspension at my dealer.

Is it as good as standard M Sport suspension? Difficult. Ultimately it rolls a bit more as the springs are softer. But the damping control is vastly better and this goes a long way to resolving this.

Read your posts and they have helped (thank you doctor). To be honest I am not that bothered about a bit of roll while its not ideal driving the car hard this morning it was not an issue the real issue was the damping so maybe the adaptive will do enough to pull me back from the brink just got to find one to drive now!!

[sunscreemer]

My 320i xDrive has standard suspension and feels fine, OK it's not as firm as the Audi A3 S-Line i've come from but that is quite hard suspension. Perhaps the extra weight of the diesel over petrol has an impact?

[NISFAN]

Acraptive suspension is roughly the same in comfort setting as what you drove, you have to select Sport to get it better, but driving in Sport mode all the time is irritating.

There is no fix to this other than buying M Sport kit and fit it after delivery.

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

Acraptive suspension is roughly the same in comfort setting as what you drove, you have to select Sport to get it better, but driving in Sport mode all the time is irritating.

There is no fix to this other than buying M Sport kit and fit it after delivery.

Hi Nisfan why is it irritating?

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

Acraptive suspension is roughly the same in comfort setting as what you drove, you have to select Sport to get it better, but driving in Sport mode all the time is irritating.

There is no fix to this other than buying M Sport kit and fit it after delivery.

Also is there not some physical reason why they don't fit the M sport suspension in the first place?

[NISFAN]

Originally Posted by Stan876

Hi Nisfan why is it irritating?

I guess I should have qualified whether you are going manual or auto, but in auto in Sport the gear changes are at high revs....always. But also, unless you think you will cope with selecting Sport every time you start the car, this is not a practical option.

On my car if in Sport the gear changes happen at 3k minimum regardless of how light you are on the throttle, when in Comfort I rarley need to go over 2k rpm. And yes that extra 1k makes a big difference in noise levels and smoothness (especially with a hair trigger throttle in Sport mode).

[NISFAN]

Originally Posted by Stan876

Also is there not some physical reason why they don't fit the M sport suspension in the first place?

Good question.

Technically, the suspension bottoming out positions would be well below 'normal' ride height, so it is not that the front driveshafts can't cope with a lower suspension.
The 'ideal' ride height might be better in the +20mm position in terms of wear and tear, or it could simply be that BMW expect AWD owners to want to rough it and have automatically raised the height.

The fact that they don't offer M Performance suspension for xDrive might indicate the former, but who knows?

[gtsussex]

Originally Posted by Stan876

Read your posts and they have helped (thank you doctor). To be honest I am not that bothered about a bit of roll while its not ideal driving the car hard this morning it was not an issue the real issue was the damping so maybe the adaptive will do enough to pull me back from the brink just got to find one to drive now!!

Just had a quick look on BMW's site and there don't seem to be any demo's on used list with adaptive. I had a crap time trying to find one.

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

I guess I should have qualified whether you are going manual or auto, but in auto in Sport the gear changes are at high revs....always. But also, unless you think you will cope with selecting Sport every time you start the car, this is not a practical option.

On my car if in Sport the gear changes happen at 3k minimum regardless of how light you are on the throttle, when in Comfort I rarley need to go over 2k rpm. And yes that extra 1k makes a big difference in noise levels and smoothness (especially with a hair trigger throttle in Sport mode).

OK thanks i am going for manual anyway as it happens. The sport auto irritated me (not for the reasons you stated) in the 320D unless i was pottering although i only had it for a weekend so i may not have got used to it. I think it may be more suited to the 330D engine.

[Stan876]

Originally Posted by gtsussex

Just had a quick look on BMW's site and there don't seem to be any demo's on used list with adaptive. I had a crap time trying to find one.

I have been looking too they are like rocking horse droppings!!

[gtsussex]

Originally Posted by Stan876

I have been looking too they are like rocking horse droppings!!

Ridiculous really. I couldn't find a VSS demo anywhere so had to make judgement call on that. Think the only thing you can try doing is asking dealer - they can see if any are being registered throughout UK. That's what I did.

[jbtco]

as I understand it you can configure drivetrain and suspension separately by setting up appropriately in I drive.

[sunscreemer]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

I guess I should have qualified whether you are going manual or auto, but in auto in Sport the gear changes are at high revs....always. But also, unless you think you will cope with selecting Sport every time you start the car, this is not a practical option.

On my car if in Sport the gear changes happen at 3k minimum regardless of how light you are on the throttle, when in Comfort I rarley need to go over 2k rpm. And yes that extra 1k makes a big difference in noise levels and smoothness (especially with a hair trigger throttle in Sport mode).

Unless you've got Sport auto, flick the lever over to Sport mode and use the paddle shift of course! But yes, I agree, Sport mode great when you want to extract all of the power but when on a straight for a while it does mean you cruise at unnecessarily high revs.

[NISFAN]

Originally Posted by sunscreemer

Unless you've got Sport auto, flick the lever over to Sport mode and use the paddle shift of course! But yes, I agree, Sport mode great when you want to extract all of the power but when on a straight for a while it does mean you cruise at unnecessarily high revs.

That doesn't even work, because when the gearbox is in sport/manual mode the gear changes are harsh. Great when pushing hard, but unbearable when on the cruise.

It should be like DCT, a selectable gear change harshness profile. Interestingly DCT's seem to be able to do smooth changes when bimbling along even when set in mode 3 (hardcore). They check where your throttle setting is aswell, wow a computer multi tasking, who would believe it

[NISFAN]

Originally Posted by jbtco

as I understand it you can configure drivetrain and suspension separately by setting up appropriately in I drive.

Only in one direction, so hardly any help

[dopper99]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

That doesn't even work, because when the gearbox is in sport/manual mode the gear changes are harsh. Great when pushing hard, but unbearable when on the cruise.

It should be like DCT, a selectable gear change harshness profile. Interestingly DCT's seem to be able to do smooth changes when bimbling along even when set in mode 3 (hardcore). They check where your throttle setting is aswell, wow a computer multi tasking, who would believe it

Wow, I didnt realise that, now I see one of the reasons why you dont like adaptive. Very interesting.
So what you are saying is that it IS NOT possible to have adaptive set to a Sport mode BUT the auto gearbox set to a more relaxed mode? I thought these may be configurable?

If this is the case, I can see why the fixed M Sport suspension could be more desirable if you want a permanently sport ride, but without the annoying gearbox.

[sdb123]

Originally Posted by Stan876

OK thanks i am going for manual anyway as it happens. The sport auto irritated me (not for the reasons you stated) in the 320D unless i was pottering although i only had it for a weekend so i may not have got used to it. I think it may be more suited to the 330D engine.

Same here....I've got a 320d and went with manual. The 330d is a fantastic match with the gearbox but the loan 320d auto I drove I could never bond with for some reason.