forst off, congrats! nice car.

my buddy has the 535xi, 2008, 120k'ish kilometers. so same style as yours. Some experiences he had that may help you...

he put on stage 1 cobb AP tune, what a disaster. Had to replace the diverter valves (aka blow off/bypass). Before the tune, the fuel pump replaced a few times already, under warranty luckily, but seriously, a few times? It's a well known bmw issue, they got it handled and extended the warranty. Also had to replace fuel injectors, also under warranty. Now he has a boost leak, trying to figure it out with his mechanic. His diverters are aftermarket (Forge) with upgraded plumbing. Appears to be a vacuum leak. The N54 SEEMS easy/cheap to upgrade but damn, you'll be in the shop more than a few times from what Ive seen.

Also, lowering, seems like only H&R makes springs for the x and it is way too low, probably even for Blain/4DGS. had problems witht he control arms after the drop. Consider coilovers if you do drop, the h&r's are BRUTAL.

Aside from all that, it's a nice car when it works, tread carefully if you choose to tune it, those turbos and related plumbing, and fuel delivery system on the N54 is flakey.

 

Nothin' too low for me

 

Nice ride, AD. I think you owe me a spin!

 

Thanks. I'll need to turn of the DTC if you truly want a spin though.

 

A couple of pix as requested.







Still learning all the features though. Have to say the iDrive is a handy feature - far more intuitive than the rags said.

 

Love the interior. What kind of leather?

 

Dakota leather, whatever that means. Less smooth than the G but despite being 4+ years old shows no evidence of wear compared to the passenger or rear seat. It's grippier (is that a word??) than other leather seats I've had. I like how the side bolster adjusts out when the car's turned off - makes getting out a tad easier.

 

Dakota is BMW's least expensive leather - Nappa would be my choice

 

Perhaps, but it's not leatherette at least.

Oh and I just found out about the adaptive headlights tonight - first time I've driven it at night. Watching them do the self calibration is kinda funky.

 

nice car! hopefully ur adaptive headlights last longer than my buddy's 04 545i did, his active steering also stopped working...but I would still consider this car maybe a 550i 6speed

 

Doesn't have active steering - just the regular variable boost system.

Oh, and the difference between D and DS is rather startling compared to the G where the difference was noticeable but not remarkably so. Wondering about paddles...

 

The BMW sport mode is definitely not as desirable - and I'm not just saying that because I drive an Infiniti or because I'm trying to rank your car down. The BMW sport mode will stay in a low gear revving it past 3000rpm even when you're not accelerating making it overwhelming to use regularly. It will also allow it to rev freely to the redline for no reason. The Infiniti also has better downshifts but the BMW manual mode is much better and smoother and doesn't bang into gear like a G. Also, when you're shifting into reverse or drive the BMW is much smoother unlike Infiniti where the transmission will clunk into gear.

 

Can't say I've noticed it doing that in sport mode. I use DS usually when I'm in rush hour traffic - lets the engine respond quicker in order to maintain that 'less than a car length' gap you so desperately need for defending your road position.

I actually find the normal drive mode is plenty responsive for other driving but can also say that with less than 3 weeks experience with the car that I don't know all it's parameters and pitfalls yet.

As for the G, I had the '07 x with added flappy paddles on the 5AT. It was a great combo. The paddles let you short shift when sport mode wanted to hold gears too long (as you state is a trait of the BMW) while in DS. I found the D mode plus the paddles was a perfect compromise.

 

I was looking at this too for a replacement! I have a 05x with about 155,000km and Im looking for something faster! I was looking at the 335xi a littler cheaper but still fast! How are you liking it so far compared to your G? My original plan was to get a 07 G but decided 05 because didn't really have any money to spend on a 07. Its going to be a g37x or a 335xi just because of the turbo haha. Still not sure though. I won't be getting it for like 1 year or so but I would like ideas!

 

Well, since I was always a BMW guy (from 1987 to 2007: '76 2002, '80 320i, '88 325is, '90 535i 5 speed, '91 M5), the change to Japanese cars was a bit strange for me. The '07 G35x (5AT) was a nice car but didn't live up to the magazine statements that it was 'this close to a BMW' in a number of ways, most importantly the driving feel and ergonomics. The G37S (6MT) felt nicer to drive but I never really got used to the manual as the clutch never felt right to me.

Getting back into BMW immediately brought back the proper feel and improved ergonomics. The feature list on the 535 is dauntingly extensive (can you believe you can even adjust the proportion of seat heat to the base and back?) but is fairly easy to grasp. This car is also shockingly fast, but unless you depress the throttle right through the detent at the floor, it starts off in 2nd gear - when fully floored, holy **** does it launch. So yeah, I like it more.