I know this subject can get soupy and is veeeery often misunderstood by drivers and salesmen alike..but

I have driven my friends new X5 50i which has the sport activity pack with the 20 inch wheels and no adaptive drive. It's such an improvement over our 09' 4.8i sport with the 20s (which all have adaptive drive) in terms of ride quality and he's on the OEM runflats, while I swapped in non-runflat Bridgestones - which by themselves improve the ride in the 4.8 and its still not as good as the 5.0.

BTW: adaptive drive is simply the hydraulic roll bars that stiffen up only in corners to prevent/reduce body roll without the harshness of a permanently stiff anti-roll bar(s)

So my 1st question is: Do you think that adaptive drive will impact the harness of the suspension at all? In theory it's disconnected while going straight. But will it give the ride of a stiffer suspension in a corner - meaning feeling the bumps and harsh crashes over rough pavement.

My guess is the harshness in our 4.8 is mostly due to the sport suspension, namely the shock and spring rates. The sport activity pack now offered doesn't have sport suspension which I'm guessing is why my friend's 5.0 rides so much nicer than our 4.8. But you can now order a car without sports suspension yet with adaptive drive (not possible in 2009). Would such a car ride as smoothly as an equivalent X5 without adaptive drive...?


2nd question: Am I crazy or did adaptive drive come on all X6s up to a point and now its a $3,500.00 option?

Thanks,
DRP