[hinckley]

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I'm trying to get back into an MT car (while supplies last!) and would really like an AWD vehicle. About a year ago, I drove a 340i xDrive with MSport and DHP and thought it handled like crap. It sat high, there was a lot of body roll (for a car its size) and the steering was far from BMW's past high standards. I never quite understood it, but with that car, I believe there was a difference in the MSport suspension components between RWD and xDrive vehicles.

Now I'm back at it, considering an LCI 440i xDrive 6MT. I'd spec the car with all the performance bits including MSport and Track Handling. But I was wondering whether anyone knew whether there is still a difference in the suspension componentry between the 440i and 440i xDrive. Any help is appreciated.

btw, this is not a RWD v AWD thread. As you'll see from my sig below, I have a long history driving RWD BMWs.

[Lefo]

That's a very good question. I would like to know.

[RedKloud]

The ride height is 10mm higher on the xDrive cars, otherwise the M adaptive suspension (part of track handling pack) is the same, I believe.
The M Sport suspension, OTOH, is only available on RWD cars.

[DrifterX]

4 series standard height is lower than a 3 series by maybe half an inch so the xDrive height should still be lower than the 340i you drove but it'll still be too high and I think you'll experience the same issues as you had during your test drive. For the 4 Series, the suspension components ARE different between the two.

I've personally never bothered even trying an xDrive 3/4'er model because they sit quite high and I know that 10mm difference is going to make a difference, let alone the driving dynamics with the less sporty shocks/springs (I suspect the spring rating isn't as high as the RWD models). RWD models get beefier anti-roll bars as well.

Based on your car history and the fact you didn't like how that 340i xDrive drove (440i isn't much smaller/lighter), you should go for RWD in your 440i. Although, best thing would be if you could test drive RWD and xDrive back to back to make an informed decision.

In my opinion, only benefit of xDrive in a performance mindset is the acceleration... but it's marginal.

PS. I tried to make it a response that wasn't RWD vs. xDrive but it's so hard not to! :P

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by DrifterX

PS. I tried to make it a response that wasn't RWD vs. xDrive but it's so hard not to! :P

And this is exactly my conundrum . . . My 911 is my primary summer car (90%+). The 440 would be my "winter beater". That's why I'd really prefer to have an AWD vehicle.

[kern417]

the xdrive also comes with a square tire setup, correct? whereas an msport rwd will come with a staggered tire setup.

[DrifterX]

Originally Posted by hinckley

And this is exactly my conundrum . . . My 911 is my primary summer car (90%+). The 440 would be my "winter beater". That's why I'd really prefer to have an AWD vehicle.

Well, had you noted that in your initial post, I would have asked you this:
Will you be the only one driving?
- If not, do you trust anyone else to drive a RWD car with that much power? If you don't trust em, go AWD.
- If you are the only person driving, go with RWD + Winter tires and enjoy. I had zero problems with traction this past winter (I have Blizzak WS80 winter tires).

Done deal

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by kern417

the xdrive also comes with a square tire setup, correct? whereas an msport rwd will come with a staggered tire setup.

No. The xDrive with Track Pack comes with staggered 19x8.0/19x18.5. Are the tires RFTs?

[DrifterX]

Originally Posted by kern417

the xdrive also comes with a square tire setup, correct? whereas an msport rwd will come with a staggered tire setup.

You can get an 18" square setup from factory for RWD as well. Or if you order 19" with all season tires (this option also removes the M Sport Brakes in Canada, btw!)

[donkey]

Originally Posted by hinckley

And this is exactly my conundrum . . . My 911 is my primary summer car (90%+). The 440 would be my "winter beater". That's why I'd really prefer to have an AWD vehicle.

Sounds like you have it sorted

[Bbb34]

Originally Posted by drive335

Sounds like you have it sorted

Was exactly what I was thinking, don't overthink this one. I own RWD, drive it year round, and recommend it over current generation of xDrive to anyone who will listen (mostly due to "softer feeling" and higher stock suspension on xDrive), but xDrive is better winter car, absolutely no doubt.

[Uber Commuter]

Get the xDrive, skip the adaptive suspension, and throw on a quality set of coils.

Best of both worlds

[z3n0mal4]

I'm in the same boat, pondering to go rwd or awd. Except a fwd Civic Type-R that i crashed, i've only driven rwd all my life. Haven't sampled a xdrive 3/4 yet, but i always managed to get through winter times with good tyres. Difference being i never had 320hp to play with.
You can have staggered with xDrive. Also you can get adaptive suspension and modify after if you don't like the feel. I think i'm going this path as well.

[hinckley]

I found an LCI 4GC at a local dealer. It has MSport and Track Packages. I'm going to drive it tomorrow. Hopefully that will give me a better perspective.

[metallicpea]

Originally Posted by hinckley

I found an LCI 4GC at a local dealer. It has MSport and Track Packages. I'm going to drive it tomorrow. Hopefully that will give me a better perspective.

Nice find. First hand info is always valuable.

[CQVD330]

Originally Posted by hinckley

No. The xDrive with Track Pack comes with staggered 19x8.0/19x18.5. Are the tires RFTs?

I confirm. Stagerred rft's

[STR8-6IX]

Originally Posted by hinckley

I'm trying to get back into an MT car (while supplies last!) and would really like an AWD vehicle. About a year ago, I drove a 340i xDrive with MSport and DHP and thought it handled like crap. It sat high, there was a lot of body roll (for a car its size) and the steering was far from BMW's past high standards. I never quite understood it, but with that car, I believe there was a difference in the MSport suspension components between RWD and xDrive vehicles.

Now I'm back at it, considering an LCI 440i xDrive 6MT. I'd spec the car with all the performance bits including MSport and Track Handling. But I was wondering whether anyone knew whether there is still a difference in the suspension componentry between the 440i and 440i xDrive. Any help is appreciated.

btw, this is not a RWD v AWD thread. As you'll see from my sig below, I have a long history driving RWD BMWs.

The RWD version has better suspension less body roll.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by hinckley

I found an LCI 4GC at a local dealer. It has MSport and Track Packages. I'm going to drive it tomorrow. Hopefully that will give me a better perspective.

Originally Posted by Bbb34

Was exactly what I was thinking, don't overthink this one. I own RWD, drive it year round, and recommend it over current generation of xDrive to anyone who will listen (mostly due to "softer feeling" and higher stock suspension on xDrive), but xDrive is better winter car, absolutely no doubt.

Well I drove the 4GC, and this ^^^

Net, net . . . it's very good. I set the car to Sport and drove very twisty country roads (full of spring potholes). The car handled well and was very compliant. I wouldn't mistake it for an M3, but I won't complain about saving $10K and having the added security of xDrive. The GC had the black 18" wheels and they looked very small on the car. There was a lot of gap. The 19s will fill the wheel wells better, but I do believe that the car does sit higher than a similarly equipped RWD. The 4GC was Snapper Blue. It looked very nice on that car. I wish there was a black 19" wheel available. It'd be perfect with that color.

Anyway, I was happy and ordered a 440i xDrive Coupe for early-September ED. It's fully loaded except for a few small things like rear sunshade and CarPlay. And it's a 6MT!
I tentatively spec'd Snapper Blue with Cashmere Beige Merino Individual interior. Both exterior and interior colors may change, but the merino is a must for me to dress up what is otherwise a very down-market interior (imo). I'll have the MPPSK and a few other bits installed at the port.

[xlover]

Originally Posted by hinckley

Well I drove the 4GC, and this ^^^

Net, net . . . it's very good. I set the car to Sport and drove very twisty country roads (full of spring potholes). The car handled well and was very compliant. I wouldn't mistake it for an M3, but I won't complain about saving $10K and having the added security of xDrive. The GC had the black 18" wheels and they looked very small on the car. There was a lot of gap. The 19s will fill the wheel wells better, but I do believe that the car does sit higher than a similarly equipped RWD. The 4GC was Snapper Blue. It looked very nice on that car. I wish there was a black 19" wheel available. It'd be perfect with that color.

Anyway, I was happy and ordered a 440i xDrive Coupe for early-September ED. It's fully loaded except for a few small things like rear sunshade and CarPlay. And it's a 6MT!
I tentatively spec'd Snapper Blue with Cashmere Beige Merino Individual interior. Both exterior and interior colors may change, but the merino is a must for me to dress up what is otherwise a very down-market interior (imo). I'll have the MPPSK and a few other bits installed at the port.

Anything else you can share about the LCI suspension and steering feel? Based on your above comments sounds like it is much improved.

According to BMW presser they didn't change the ride height for xdrive vs pre-lci but they put work into stiffening the suspension and steering across all variants. We will not see see shared sport suspension ride height between xdrive and rwd until the g20/g22 following the trend from the full g30 line and m240.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by xlover

Anything else you can share about the LCI suspension and steering feel? Based on your above comments sounds like it is much improved. According to BMW presser they didn't change the ride height for xdrive vs pre-lci but they put work into stiffening the suspension and steering across all variants.

My comparison is with an LCI 340i xDrive with MSport and DHP. As I said in my original post, I'm not even sure that that car at the time had the M-Suspension. I had not driven a pre-LCI 440, so I'm not really sure how much the suspension has been tuned from pre- to post-LCI. I will tell you that I flung the car around some pretty narrow, twisty country roads. There were a lot of potholes and sand from the winter. I felt the rear break a couple of times but the nannies kicked in and pivoted the car. The ride was firm, but not my Porsche 911 firm. The suspension did not crash thru the potholes. I like to drive, and I like to drive hard, but I've had mixed luck trying aftermarket suspension componentry in the past. I prefer to keep cars relatively stock now. By adding all of the stock bits from the MSport and Track Packs, the driving dynamics of this car will work for me, especially as it's primarily a winter car.

As an aside, the steering on the 4GC was a bit more interesting. In the 3er that I had driven last year, it was very light and not precise. In this car, I definitely felt more feedback (again, not like my Porsche), but it was very, very firm. In fact, I stopped shortly after I began the drive, because I thought that I could adjust the steering firmness independently of the suspension. You can't. So I lived with it on the drive and quickly got accustomed to it. However, for city driving - especially getting into city parking spaces - I'm gonna guess that I'll switch to comfort mode (or maybe spend more time with the weights at the gym).

Originally Posted by xlover

We will not see see shared sport suspension ride height between xdrive and rwd until the g20/g22 following the trend from the full g30 line and m240.

I think that's right. It should follow the G30 in that regard.

[Strudle]

I don't know the technical differences but the x drive GC handles much better than the 340 with x drive. I drove both back to back on the same roads and liked the GC steering and suspension better: more planted, less body roll.

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by Strudle

I don't know the technical differences but the x drive GC handles much better than the 340 with x drive. I drove both back to back on the same roads and liked the GC steering and suspension better: more planted, less body roll.

I think it's finally sinking in for me. RedKloud said it above and I've been absorbing all the order guides, but it really does matter how the cars we're comparing are spec'd. I'm pretty sure that this is right:

• 3/4 RWD with M Sport Package - M Sport Suspension
• 3/4 xDrive with M Sport Package - Standard Suspension
• 3/4 RWD with M Sport & Track Packages - Adaptive M Sport Suspension
• 3/4 xDrive with M Sport & Track Packages - Adaptive M Sport Suspension

So if you go xDrive, the only way to get a sporty suspension is to go all the way to the Track Package. One other thing . . . I think that in all of the above cases, the xDrive models sit slightly higher than the RWD models.