I guess Ive tested dsc to its limits with the driveway.
The e46 and e39 needed it turned off from time to time with the need ranging from the first push to full on turning it off. Mud can cause you to get stuck because of the dsc. It really does help most of the time though.
But if things get REALLY slick the brakes locking down plus the power being pulled from the engine in attempts to gain traction will cause you to get stuck. If you turn it all off and gun the motor you can make it where you weren't before with it turned on.
The X5 I haven't had to touch the control so far. Its handled everything needed flawlessly. Now the first reaction I get every time I tell someone that is "its 4x4 so what did you expect" or "it has all wheel drive so that's why".
What they don't realize is how many awd and 4x4 vehicles I have had to tow up my driveway that have managed to get themselves stuck.
The biggest thing the X5 has done that impressed me so far is two different situations I was in with it.
The first was in the driveway in a section I normally only go thru with my large trucks. My daughter had brought her 528i over to have the wheel bearing replaced. Where the 528i was sitting made getting the X5 out the normal way impossible so I had to go out the driveway section reserved for large 4x4 vehicles. Its not that its muddier or more slick than the normal way its the ruts. These ruts caused me to end up with the passenger side front wheel 2 feet off the ground and the drivers side rear wheel 1 foot off the ground at the SAME time.
If you have any experience with 4x4 trucks you know this is a recipe for stucksville. Without a locker in at least one of the axles your not going anywhere as the vehicle will just spin the free tire on the front and rear ends. So as soon as I felt the teetering effect I knew what happened. My "audience" was all going on about "its stuck now for sure!"
The X5 paused for about 2 seconds like it was thinking. Nothing happened for 2 seconds then it just crept on like it was nothing. THAT impressed the hell out of me.
The next time was during the massive snow we got. Half of the gas station's parking lot I was at doesn't get sunlight most of the day. That side was solid ice. There were 4x4 trucks stuck and spinning all over it. I waited for a pause in their attempts to free themselves and then drove thru them like an obstacle course. Never spun.
Not only did THAT impress me it also impressed the trucks owners that were stuck. I had a bunch of them coming up to me while I was getting gas in the gas cans for the generator asking what I had modded and stuff. I told them it was all factory with zero mods. None of them believed me. Then I had different ones asking me to tow them out but I had to explain I don't have a trailer hitch so I couldn't help them. I went back later in my F150 4x4 and pulled several out.
Little X5 is a pretty popular subject around here after all of that. I have had people walk up to me even after that asking if this is the X5 they had heard about from the snow day. But that's more small town than fame
Point being that at least with Xdrive the dsc stuff rocks but with any dsc situation knowing how to use it turning off wise can make a huge difference between stuck or not.
I actually use it on my 323i when autocrossing. I just knew it needed to be off when I first started runs with it since I knew how I ran my other cars. I had much better times with the dsc on with the 323i.