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      06-11-2019, 05:46 AM   #67
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Having had a loaners with out the glass controls, absolutely confirmed for me, that I would get the glass controls over and over again.
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      06-11-2019, 08:04 AM   #68
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I sat in the drivers seat looking at the glass controls, this was in the dealers lot as I was about to take one for a spin. I first thought, hey, this is cool, I like the multi faceted look, the fact that its different but then I saw all the fingerprints from past drivers. The reality hit that it would be a constant source of OCD overload to keep it clean and shiny. I knew right then and there that glass controls were not for me. The black piano plastic will be challenge enough
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      06-11-2019, 10:18 AM   #69
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Quote:
Originally Posted by specracer View Post
Having had a loaners with out the glass controls, absolutely confirmed for me, that I would get the glass controls over and over again.
Yes. The black plastic alternative is no longer a option for me on any new BMW. It’s not like the black plastic idrive control knob was bad but until you see it covered up with faceted glass, it now became unacceptable. Just like the seat adjustments of the last generations. The black plastic knobs on the sides of the seats that great you when you open the doors look very low rent for a luxury vehicle.




Last edited by MystroX5; 06-11-2019 at 11:19 AM..
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      06-11-2019, 11:12 AM   #70
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Originally Posted by MystroX5 View Post
Yes. The black plastic alternative is no longer a option for me on any new BMW. It’s not like the black plastic idrive control knob was bad but until you see it covered up with faceted glass, it now became unacceptable. Just like the seat adjustments of the last generations. The black plastic knobs on the sides of the seats that great you when you open the doors look very low rent for a luxury vehicle.
This was one of the very few complaints I had about the F15 interior, the seat control buttons were much better suited to an econobox.
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      06-11-2019, 11:22 AM   #71
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Originally Posted by amphiprion View Post
This was one of the very few complaints I had about the F15 interior, the seat control buttons were much better suited to an econobox.
Coming from many luxury cars over the last 3 decades, a A8 then to a Jeep GC then back to the luxury of the G05 X5, I notice all the details. Everyone has upped their game over the last 10 years. Perfection is certainly in the details at this level. Opulence is to be expected.
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      06-11-2019, 11:30 AM   #72
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There are still a few interior bits that remain "low rent" in the X5.. Not wanting to hijack this thread, I'll start a new one...
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      06-11-2019, 01:53 PM   #73
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MystroX5 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by amphiprion View Post
This was one of the very few complaints I had about the F15 interior, the seat control buttons were much better suited to an econobox.
Coming from many luxury cars over the last 3 decades, a A8 then to a Jeep GC then back to the luxury of the G05 X5, I notice all the details. Everyone has upped their game over the last 10 years. Perfection is certainly in the details at this level. Opulence is to be expected.
it's one if my favorite things inside and the ladies (my wife included) always compliment the crystal. usually it's just one of my co-workers when we get lunch but the crystal is a show stopper
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      06-11-2019, 02:16 PM   #74
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It is all about priorities. MOST people are looking at options and wondering if they are worth the cost. I originally ordered a hitch, but then removed it and chose parking assist instead, and I’m glad I did even tho I will rarely use the automated parking.

I was ABLE to spend as much as I wanted, but didn’t want to turn a $60k car into an $80k car. And I didn’t care about a lot of the options.

This is my first luxury vehicle. I was more interested in comfort, so I got all those features. My only regret is not getting HUD because the dashboard is so hard to see with the steering wheel in the way, and all of the busy-ness.

The glass controls are expensive. I think the audio system is a much better value, so I got the HK upgrade. I also got acoustic windows and luxury seating.

You don’t see a lot of on-the-lot cars with the glass controls either. I think dealers are afraid to order them, because people don’t want to pay so much for them. They would rather have other stuff.

Just my opinion. Choose what speaks to you. That is how you will be happiest.
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      06-11-2019, 04:45 PM   #75
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It was sunny this afternoon and the sun was shining right on my glass idrive controller. I had to throw a towel over it.
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      06-11-2019, 09:33 PM   #76
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It was sunny this afternoon and the sun was shining right on my glass idrive controller. I had to throw a towel over it.
There's a joke in there somewhere... 😂
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      06-11-2019, 09:37 PM   #77
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It was sunny this afternoon and the sun was shining right on my glass idrive controller. I had to throw a towel over it.
Don't look directly at it, you'll go blind or turn into a pillar of salt!
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      06-13-2019, 12:32 AM   #78
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MystroX5 View Post
Yes. The black plastic alternative is no longer a option for me on any new BMW. It’s not like the black plastic idrive control knob was bad but until you see it covered up with faceted glass, it now became unacceptable. Just like the seat adjustments of the last generations. The black plastic knobs on the sides of the seats that great you when you open the doors look very low rent for a luxury vehicle.
Yes agree! Loved my 5 series with multi-contour seats, but all those plastics black knobs definitely seemed “basic” to me ... so the x5 seat controls do look so much better.

and Still enjoying my glass controls... that’s a no brainer on a custom order...

Last edited by bluegreen; 06-13-2019 at 12:34 AM.. Reason: Messed up quote tag
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      01-12-2020, 12:34 PM   #79
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marty in Bgm View Post
I sat in the drivers seat looking at the glass controls, this was in the dealers lot as I was about to take one for a spin. I first thought, hey, this is cool, I like the multi faceted look, the fact that its different but then I saw all the fingerprints from past drivers. The reality hit that it would be a constant source of OCD overload to keep it clean and shiny. I knew right then and there that glass controls were not for me. The black piano plastic will be challenge enough
Fingerprints over black will always show more than over glass IMO, I do have a small microfiber handy for cleaning delicate surfaces like piano black, instrument cluster and iDrive touch screen
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      01-12-2020, 12:53 PM   #80
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Quote:
Originally Posted by specracer View Post
Having had a loaners with out the glass controls, absolutely confirmed for me, that I would get the glass controls over and over again.
x2. had a loaner x7 and thought the same thing
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      01-12-2020, 12:55 PM   #81
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Originally Posted by AndroidRobot View Post
it's one if my favorite things inside and the ladies (my wife included) always compliment the crystal. usually it's just one of my co-workers when we get lunch but the crystal is a show stopper
Initially I was not impressed with the glass controls until I saw the standard shifter. The glass control became a requirement.
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      01-12-2020, 01:45 PM   #82
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Black Plastic, when done well, doesn't bother me. Shiny black plastic (Piano Finish) looks cheap and only serves to collect fingerprints.

On the other hand, I can take or leave the faceted glass controls. My wife recoiled when she saw it and found it garish. She wanted the leather dash though.

Personally I liked the ceramic controls better and while I have them on my G30, I wouldn't have paid for them if they were not part of a bundle.
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      01-12-2020, 02:07 PM   #83
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Love the glass controls, and they fit the overall interior design. Had ceramic controls in my previous F15, and loved those too. The standard shifter in the G05 looks like it belongs in a Nissan, no offense. I'm not much for skulls and 8-balls either, and leather just looks tired nowadays - everyone has had a leather shifter. The glass/crystal is very tactile, super easy to keep clean with a swipe of a cloth, doesn't scratch or wear, and is visually very attractive to me, and actually to everyone who sits in my car. Being crystal it's possible to incorporate lighting into it as well, another visual plus. "Pimp," to me, would be the big chrome shifter, or the aforementioned skull. Beauty is in the eye.
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      01-12-2020, 07:54 PM   #84
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I'm sure someone will offer an aftermarket solution anytime, since retrofitting still very unknown for dealers yet
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      01-12-2020, 08:50 PM   #85
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So how easy is the crystal to scratch or crack? I am somewhat clumsy and would be worried about banging it with my purse when I get in, or my water cup (it's TX, too hot and ice water is necessary 7+ months of the year). I do think they look nice, but wouldn't be upset not to have them.
It's actual crystal, so you'd have to have a metal that is harder than the glass, and a sharp edge at that. I'd guess that diamonds are likely the biggest worry, but rings would generally be away from the glass.
I thought one of the reviews I saw said they were not crystal, just plain glass. Don't recall who did that particular review, but wanted to point out in case that matters to anyone, may want to confirm.
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      01-12-2020, 08:59 PM   #86
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Weird, I don't know why I had the impression when I test drove an 850xDrive that the SA told me that those are actual Swarovski crystals but they could not call them like that. Was he wrong or is my memory playing games with me? I guess it is the same shifter as the one in the G05 with the letter being different of course inside of it.
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      01-12-2020, 09:13 PM   #87
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All BMW’s use the same upgraded crystal/glass controls.
It’s the same glass work that is cut to what most people generically call crystal. Most dealers just call it crystal because of the many internal facets of the glass and most consumers don’t know leaded glass is called crystal. Technically what BMW is using is “faceted glass”. Genuine “Crystal” is just glass with lead or minerals in it so it can be made thinner and stronger. That isn’t nessisary in this application and won’t make it shine/reflect any more. BMW probably didn’t want to have glass with lead in it either for ecco reasons since that seems to be a priority to some buyers.

“Faceted glass” is certainly no less impressive than leaded glass (aka crystal} because it doesn’t need the 8% of lead or minerals to make it any stronger in its application.

Last edited by MystroX5; 01-12-2020 at 09:34 PM..
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      01-12-2020, 09:39 PM   #88
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I thought one of the reviews I saw said they were not crystal, just plain glass. Don't recall who did that particular review, but wanted to point out in case that matters to anyone, may want to confirm.
Actually, it's hard to track down what it's really made of. It's been referred to in multiple reviews, particularly early reviews, as Swarovski crystal (and nothing from BMW or Swarovski confirms), so much that "crystal" has become the default moniker. BMW only specifies "glass" controls. But fact is, crystal and glass are somewhat interchangeable. All crystal is glass, but not all glass is crystal. "Ordinary" glass is an amorphous solid (mostly silicon dioxide with metallic carbonates), while crystal is, well, "crystalline" glass (atoms and molecules arranged in an ordered three dimensional lattice), made by the addition of various minerals. As far as physical properties, glass is actually stronger than crystal because of its uniformity. The EU has very specific requirements for glass to be called crystal (largely ignored - lead 24%, density 2.9, refractive index 1.5+), while in the US any glass with more than 1% lead content can be properly termed crystal, although the generally accepted requirement for leaded crystal is at least a 24% lead content. And then there is "lead-free" crystal (added metallic oxides other than lead). So as far as the actual composition of the "glass" controls in the X5 (and X7), the answer likely is "it's complicated."

Last edited by Paladin1; 01-12-2020 at 11:04 PM..
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