100 miles 2010 X5d Initial Impressions

[alewifebp]

Originally Posted by Weasel

Try going directly from an E65 7 series to anything else... you reach for the gear shifter on the column and turn on the damn wipers!

I had the same experience coming from a 2006 ML. For a while my hand was constantly going towards the steering wheel control, and my foot was pushing the non-existent parking brake.

Personally I feel the BMW design for the shifter makes more sense the way it is.

[E61Silver]

I have had my 535 for over a year now and still do not find the shifter as intuitive as the shifter on my old X5. I don't understand why BMW had to change the design?
It is different but not better.

[dreamx5]

It saves some space, looks different.

[FunfDreisig]

Originally Posted by E61Silver

I have had my 535 for over a year now and still do not find the shifter as intuitive as the shifter on my old X5. I don't understand why BMW had to change the design?
It is different but not better.

The E53 shifter was physically attached the transmission. The E70 shifter is compltetely electronic. It appears that BMW tried to make the E70 shifter work kind of like the "normal" console shifter (e.g. the E53). Note the arrangement of the letters on the E70 shifter (PRND) BUT then BMW made the E70 P a push button and allowed you to put the E70 in Park by just stopping the engine. So the physical layout of the letters no longer matches the order in which the shifter works. IOW when shifting from P to R you no longer pull the shifter back. FWIW the original PRND is not very intuitive for console shifters either but it is 'standard' for most automatics. And when it was developed, most automatic shifters were on the steering column where the order did not imply direction.

The truth is that the E70 is actually a push button automatic all gussied up to look like something its not. And as a consequence it no longer works like what it looks like and is not very intuitive in its own right. BTW you have glaring proof of this lack of intuitiveness when the iDrive has special instruction screens to tell you did it wrong -- again

Funf Dreisg

[Penguin]

Originally Posted by FunfDreisig

The truth is that the E70 is actually a push button automatic all gussied up to look like something its not.

Funf Dreisg

Yes, I wondered that if it wasn't for the bad memories of those "push button" transmissions in the past, such as the Edsel, would BMW have simply put buttons on the dash or steering wheel, rather than mimic a shift lever selector?


http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thum...ring-wheel.jpg

http://www.kitfoster.com/images/2006...hWeb-Large.jpg

1964 'Cuda:

http://64cuda.com/db1/00022/64cuda.c...Z_IMG_0066.JPG

Valiant:

Google Image Result for http://www.valiant.org/photos/1964/controls.jpg

Nash Rambler:

http://www.vhtrc.org/album2002/rambler03.jpg

[kbp33]

Rear cargo area slider tracks with D-rings are actually useful.

What are these used for? Thanks.

[LeMansX5]

Originally Posted by Thunder22

On a center console, you push forward to shift into reverse on EVERY car with

P R N D 1 2 3

Nothing new with pushing forward to go reverse.
I have cars with each of shifters and I find the new shifter to be much safer. Car goes into park if you open door while in drive and other safety features.

[FunfDreisig]

Originally Posted by Thunder22

On a center console, you push forward to shift into reverse on EVERY car with

P R N D 1 2 3

HUH? Just exactly how do you "push forward to shift into reverse" on EVERY center console shifter when you get in the vehicle, start it up and it is in PARK? In fact, in almost EVERY center console vehicle you pull the shifter BACK from Park to Reverse -- but not the current BMWs.

OTOH once the vehicle is moving the shifter direction works as you describe. As I posted earlier, this is an artifact of copying the shift sequence from popular early automatic transmission shifters, which were on the steering column, to automatic "console shifters" when they were introduced.

FWIW the PRND pattern makes sense if you consider that in many situations the first thing you want to do after starting the vehicle in Park is to Reverse (e.g. out a a garage, parking space, etc.) then move through Neutral and into Drive. And often you do not need to return to Reverse until you Park the vehicle.

Funf Dreisig

[FunfDreisig]

Originally Posted by Penguin

Yes, I wondered that if it wasn't for the bad memories of those "push button" transmissions in the past, such as the Edsel, would BMW have simply put buttons on the dash or steering wheel, rather than mimic a shift lever selector?....

Those images bring back many memories -- mostly bad

For example, a honkin' big (and heavy) Plymouth Suburban station wagon with a flat head six and a push button slush box. Now that's how to really impress the babes If you wanted to burn rubber you needed matches

Funf Dreisig

[jimsaq]

I find it weird too that i have to push forward to go into Reverse....

what about pulling it backwards to go into D?