Europe gets features that USA does NOT! we should protest!
 

i can't believe that most parts of the world get features in the x5 that do NOT exist in the USA version... yet the car is even made HERE.

for example, high beam assist, rear fog lights, etc... are all available overseas, but not in the USA. why can't they be an option here? i'd be willing to pay for it and they can clearly make it. it is ridiculous!

bmw really screwed up and I think I'm going to hold off on buying an 08 for now until they add some features that are found in their other bmw's, like night vision, bring back adjustable ride height, and at minimum, offer us the same features that they offer other parts of the world.

thoughts?

most of the world hates americans?? :rolleyes:

High beam assist is available on the 650.....not sure why it's not for the X....Phil

Is it worth the angst? (long)
 

Marc:

There is a trend here. Some previous posts expressing your frustration about BMW design and marketing:

Quote:

Efficient Dynamics - "What??? The US version does not get this???? they offer soft close doors in the european version but not USA?? That is just stupid. BMW is really managed by a bunch of idiots.. active cruise control is just one major feature that BMW is lacking on this car which other vehicles have had for some time. other features lacking include adjustable height, night vision, and a... i'm wondering if they just changed the name to trick people... exactly... BMW built this system half assed.... seems like they are doing that with a lot of things these days. BMW probably made a mistake with the Hydrogen vehicles.... even though the 2008 x5 will be a great car.... seems like BMW really screwed up this time and is lacking on the features that people want. i agree with the post above about adjustable ride height... bmw is behind in this game... TPMS - another example of BMW being late in the technology game... what's with these crappy feature additions... what?? no night vision?? no adaptive cruise control??? these updates are ridiculous. BMW has this technology in other vehicles!!! very disappointing!! I love this car, but here are the top 3 dumbest things about it i still don't understand why bmw took out the side airbags for rear seat passengers. they only include the head airbags in the rear now. seems like a backwards progress... i agree with you... and that is a terrible mistake on their part i think it is ridiculous that BMW is now using RED blinkers it seems there are two people working at bmw, 1) the guy who does stuff right and builds a great handling vehicle and then 2) the guy who screws things up they are ridiculous for not thinking that through and offering... it is ridiculous that bmw thinks that europe needs this and not the USA?? am i the only one who thinks it's poorly developed? that is NOT the way it should work. ouch... this is very surprising!! i'm very disappointed by this information

With this level of angst, I can't imagine that you will be happy with a new E70. It just isn't worth the frustration. On the other hand, you live in Boston, so maybe it needs a demonstration involving tea and a harbour.

Good luck in your search for automotive fulfillment :thumbup:

not only does europe have options that u dont .. we also in the middle east have options that u guys dont hahahaha .. sorry man .. i guess we arabs are willing to pay way more for cars

We pay a *lot* less than the rest of the world...and we still get plenty of options. We are thrilled with our X5.

Sounds like a BMW just isn't the vehicle for you.

:iagree:

u pay a lot less , thats why u dont get any options we get hahaha ..

th BMW is a car for me , if it wasnt i wouldnt have gotten it

The US also has regulations that Europe doesn't. You also don't pay near the price the rest of the world pays for the car.

Also options like rear fogs are useless, my 911 had them...there was no point IMO.

The most puzzling of all...

How come no heated rear view mirrors in a $50k+ vehicle????

AUD$160k optioned up here in aus

?? The side mirrors are heated.

how come there are no cupholders in Ferrari? :)
what is that good for in LA for example? if you need it - order it.

better off no heated mirrors i guess. my current x5 mirrows over time stained from heat...it looks like s... now

What's the base price of an E70 X5 4.8 in Deutschland? Put that price through the exchange rate and what would it be in US dollars?

I thought the US had it pretty cheap compared to the rest of the world... :dunno:

That's $144K in US dollars! What's THAT all about???

I think these options relate to something called vehicle build content marketing. Vehicles sold here in the US/Canada need to have a certain percentage of North American components. Hence, to meet that criteria, something certain overseas options need to be deleted. Not sure if Europe has the same mandates. This would be my guess...the other things is they also look at take rate - if most people are not going to order they do not offer (based on cost).

Only in the N.A market do they use red blinkers....:rofl:

The 3, X5, facelift 5, all have traditional yellow blinkers elsewhere. This trend is true for many Audis, too...

Americans do pay 50% less than Europe. Maybe BMW margins are a lot less in the States which may explain why they package a lot of the options which speeds up production ?
Id be intrested to know how many Americans would consider the x5 if it cost $100k or more? In the UK we have lots of cheaper SUV style vehicles starting around $25k but none can match the BMW, Merc, Audi brands hence the high premiums on these.

I would definitely NOT be in an X5 if it was anywhere close to 100k

Try in the region of the equivalent of $150,000 dollars here for a reasonably well specced X5 ;)

I'd kill for US prices ! :rofl:

You don't have to compare some where too far in the East or Europe. We here in Canada don't even have the adaptive steering included in Premium Pac. If u look at the bmw canada, it cost me 103K (Canadian is higher than USD) for a 07 E70 4.8 and i don't even have comfort seat or adaptive steering, u guys in the state are very lucky to buy that car for that price.

70K is close to 100K to me...

:iagree:
A basic X5 4.8i has a price tag of circa 535OO USD in the US. Knowing that 1 dollar equals 1,40 euro, we should pay 37860 EURO in Europe for that same car. In stead we pay 73500 EURO (Belgium) for that same basic model. So don't be too concerned to get too less for paying ... too less! You lucky b.st.rd!

yeah it's pretty sad
AUD$16k of that is just luxury tax

Having bought a loaded 2008 4.8i, I haven't seen anything that I NEED from the European or Asian or Canadian or South African specs....

Lots of overseas people saying the US pays less for the same car. I'm wondering if cost of living / wage rates are the same too. Can't really compare cost of an item without comparing how much people make (for the same job).

I've been in the US all my life - so I'm wondering how it is elsewhere.

you guys are all missing the point. it's about OPTIONS. i should have the OPTION to pay more for features if i want. and the high price of the x5 overseas has nothing to do with these options....

According to E70 catalog, I cannot even order heated mirrors, but well....

Regarding Ferrari having no cupholders, see this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW1iSiSjZ4k

Although Ferraris may not have cupholders, their F-50 got some clever tricks for opening windows....

You can't order them, because they are standard equipment.

do all e70's use red blinkers ?

No, the UAE gets gold ones! AND...they are a no cost option!!!

what do u mean no cost option ?!!

if they offer gold blinkers overseas... then there must be a part number we can order to install these on US vehicles.... anyone know?

I think it might be P56R78I67CK

the 100k price point opens up entirely new worlds.

It probably means you can order them for free... :)

and diamond encrusted mirrors ?

I think ~KaiFy GaiwanY~ got screwed by the dealer, it wasnt on his order specs...Those are free options in UAE, just like Saddle Brown leather, but you must ask for them. I hope its not too late to make sure order gets changed

I agree. I saw a picture of those blinkers posted in "the other place", they looked really neat. I think I might start saving up for them over the next year!

who said i got screwed by the dealer ?? hahaha we already have the gold blinkers and i would no way get red blinkers .. i hate them !! i was just wondering since the x5 is made in america , would we also get red blinkers ..

no one screws me over ..

i probably have options none of you have .. how about saddle interior ? :rofl: .. i have that !! i feel sorry for u guys with no options even tho the car is made in ur country .. hahahaha :nanana: :nanana:

one other thing .. my dealer is close close friends eith my dad .. now why the hell would he try to screw me over ? LOL

Calm down, sounding a little like a tard. ;)

:iagree: :thumbup:

:iagree:

Arent all cars in UAE equiped(by law) with a very annoying system that starts beeping when going over 120 km p/h ??

yes but not all cars .. and u can easily deactivate it ..

we have our QX56 and it doesnt even beep .. it just flashes "120" in the gauge .. and besides the x5 just chimes when it goes over 120 and so does our s class and our range ..

and BTW not all cars are equipped with that thing .. we have 10 cars in our garage and not one of them stays beeping .. they just chime once when it goes over 120 and thats it

:iagree:

:iagree:

Price difference UK to US.
 

I paid £30k+ for my two year old, 27,000 mile X5.

You pay $50k for the '07 model, the same car in England would be £50k+, twice the price.

Who's being robbed by BMW, not you!

well the exchange rate average for last month was $2.02 dollars against £1gbp.

Yes it would be great to have our standard/cost of living and wage but pay USA prices for our cars but that ain't going to happen.

actually I would disagree with you on that one;) Ok maybe when it is chucking it down with rain and some nutter puts his rear fogs on that is a total pain in the arse. But if your driving on the A9 in very thick dense fog then I like my front and rear fogs to be on.

I don't understand...every literature I've ever read says the USA has the highest per capita income in the world. Sure, the wage gap is increasing all over the world--but you can't possibly say that other countries have higher wages than us...or can you?

The way I see it is, those with X5s from abroad are the upper 1% of their perspective countries' population. In other countries middle class cannot afford a BMW--but here in America I believe many people can splurge 50-70k for a car if they so wish. :2cents:

We're talking about the states.....the only place you'd have to worry would be in Seattle or portions of the north, no weeks of dense fog in the states.

Ok maybe I didn't put it right in my first post

what I'm saying ( I think) is that we have a very high cost of living here in the UK I think London is the 2nd most expensive place in the world to live. Resulting in a high wage mostly (although yes you do get the minium wage earners) and the Polish:rolleyes: but I'm talking relative to buying X'5's anyway so with our cost of living being very high they are not going to make the cars less expensive. everything in the UK is expensive appart from Tesco's value range.:rofl:

but we can buy cheap stuff from America at the moment with the $ rate even when you add import duty etc etc.

Ok so you would agree they are not useless well maybe in America.;)

No I definitely see the point in areas with heavy fog, just don't see a rationale for them in the US. As I said on my 911 there was really no point.

Tell you how it is: the more you make, the less your costs of living are. Translation: if you live in the US, you pay less for everything while make more money in the same job (vs Europe) and dont forget, you also dont pay VAT that we pay and it is around 20% on EVERYTHING here and you get NOTHING in return.
No one buys 4.8 in Europe for the gas mileage and the EU fuel prices. Most X5s here are diesel.

How about a 6 series coupe with a diesel engine? Pretty weird idea, right? Today I have been sitting in one for 10 minutes in a showroom, it just came out...:)
EU goes for diesel, otherwise driving is too expensive.

Btw where can you reach 120 km/h in the UAE? :P I cant remember such a long stretch of highway apart from the airport... or did I miss a new man made island with a highway?

6 coupe price
 

Ok, here is another price comparison:

4.8-liter V-8 6 coupe

in the US MSRP $75,600

in Hungary MSRP $130,000 :confused:

Probably a relation to how many are sold in Hungary as opposed to the US.

I think that ratio is even worse...:trustme:

That's my point....if you don't sell many..the price goes up.

Relative to disposable income, the purchasing cost of cars is still significantly lower in the US compared with Europe (exchange rate doesn't come into it).

Only when you go on holiday.;) ;)

:iagree: ...too bad you can't bring back a car ;)

can we get back to the main discussion. overseas pricing has nothing to do with it... BMW doesn't make anymore money from these increased prices... they are due in most part to import taxes in those respective countries.

now back to my point... why is the 2008 model lacking so many new features!

I agree. For a price, we should be able to get any options BMW offers anywhere for the same model car/suv. Would all this customization slow down the assembly lines??

While with a twisted logic one may think a German car company have to pay import taxes in the EU just because its assembly line is in the US and that results in higher EU prices, how would this explanation address the higher prices of models assembled in the EU?

If you think BMW is paying import tax or duties for the X5 into the EU, you are wrong. According to european laws, there is no duty on cars or machines which are assembled overseas with parts already produced in the EU. The main components have to be produced in the EU, as it is for the X5 the engine , gear box, and other stuff coming out of Germany and Austria.... BMW is earning money on the on the X5 in Europe, they nearly spend money with every X5 in the US as the price level is quite low due to the exchange rate.
BTW you have to pay tax and duties if you import an X5 on your own, only the manufacturer is allowed to do this without duties....
So long

Christian