[-cj-]

I’m on the fence between the pre LCI and the 2024s. I thought I’d ask the LCI owners:

How well does the new tech work? Is it a game changer?

1) Remote parking. How tightly does it allow the car to park? I have a small two car garage and if I have the wife’s car in the garage, I can’t park the x5 because I can’t get out. Remote parking would solve this issue. But how well does it tolerate the PDCs being in the red zone? Would it even attempt to park?

2) iDrive 8 - besides the climate menu, how are people liking this over the previous system? I absolutely love the modern look of the dash board, even if it means tolerating a poorly implemented climate menu..

3) mild hybrid? Are people using this? Any noticeable difference in the fuel consumption? Anything worth noting?

What other features would people say are game changers? Has anything gotten worse? Overall, is it worth a massive delta over a brand new preLCI?

[Gfit]

I wish I could help you but I really don’t use any of those features. I’m more of the get in and drive type. The new climate control system is fine but a little annoying that there is no physical button for heated seats and steering wheel and takes a few steps to get them on without turning on the heat. Regarding #3, the mild hybrid system is always on with no option to use or not use.

[Falcon900]

I have a 48V mild hybrid on my Defender. I usually turn off the auto stop/start function, which seems to be most of what it is. It also runs an electric supercharger that assists the turbos. Whether it is on or off I get the same 10 MPG.

[R///MG]

Originally Posted by -cj-

I’m on the fence between the pre LCI and the 2024s. I thought I’d ask the LCI owners:

How well does the new tech work? Is it a game changer?

1) Remote parking. How tightly does it allow the car to park? I have a small two car garage and if I have the wife’s car in the garage, I can’t park the x5 because I can’t get out. Remote parking would solve this issue. But how well does it tolerate the PDCs being in the red zone? Would it even attempt to park?

2) iDrive 8 - besides the climate menu, how are people liking this over the previous system? I absolutely love the modern look of the dash board, even if it means tolerating a poorly implemented climate menu..

3) mild hybrid? Are people using this? Any noticeable difference in the fuel consumption? Anything worth noting?

What other features would people say are game changers? Has anything gotten worse? Overall, is it worth a massive delta over a brand new preLCI?

1. I can't answer this yet as I haven't had a need to use it. I am planning to try it out, but it's more just to see the gimmick of it.

2. with iDrive 8 I was very apprehensive at first. It felt awkward and maybe a little unconfirmable for a few days, but once I learn it, got use to it and how to quickly navigate around it I adjusted fast. The climate adjust is always on the screen and the heat/ventilated seats and heated steering wheel are also always on the screen. Presets for radio you just swipe down from the top middle. In general I feel stuff is easier to find and navigate around in the new 8 vs the iDrive 7 I had in my 21 X5MC.

3. So as others have said the mild hybrid is always on and in my personal option it makes a huge difference and I love it. The S63 engine in my 21 X5MC as you probably know had lag driving in comfort mode even if you had the auto stop start turned off and if you had it on it was horrible and jarring as you would feel the shut off then shake as it came back on.

The new S68 eliminated basically all of that. In comfort mode with auto stop start on it is silky smooth as the engine shuts off and comes back on and sometimes you don't even notice the transition. The best part though is the 150 ft tq you get from the 48V motor because that completely eliminates the lag in comfort mode and even with stop start on. It's gone and the cars goes. You don't need to worry about hitting M1 or M2 or mashing your foot to the floor while in comfort to get power. It is very responsive with just a light press of the foot to the pedal. The car just wants to F***ing go.

The things I don't like and I have seen others mention this is the removal of comfort access on the rear doors and the rear trunk levers that you pull to fold down the rear seats. The one benefit since the rear door comfort access is gone is that they have auto unlock and lock as you approach or walk away from the car, so that really helps out with not having it. As for folding down the rear seats you now have to open the rear doors and fold them down with the lever on the seat back.

Things I personally like about the LCI update. One how the grill vents are horizontal as it makes it stand out more as all the other X5s have vertical vents. Two the redesign X taillights and X headlights. They just give a bit more modern feel to it. Three the travel and comfort system, so the kids can now mount their Ipads and it looks intergated. Also 4 USB-C ports in the rear seats now as with the pre LCI you have none and would need to buy BMW's special 12V USB charger for the rear seats. Four the sky lounge illuminated glass roof. Five your phone can now be the key. Not that I don't still take the key with me it is an option for those that want to carry less on them. Six the interior lighting is better on the LCI. I believe there are more colors to pick from and there is more illuminated areas as well. Last but not least the HUD. It is a big upgrade in clarity, brightness, graphics and color. Also I should mention the autopilot is supposedly a big upgrade as it has a larger radar sensor in the front, but someone else will need to comment on it as I enjoy driving it too much to let a computer do it for me.

[Savoy2001]

So my view is this. The lci additions changes are ok. Meaning in a take or or leave it sort of way. I deliberately ordered a23 x5mc last year because I didn’t want a heavier car. The suv is heavy enough and the mild hybrid as we see adds little to nothing to the whole package. That said the different screens are again nice I guess but but that nice honestly. Nothing I would actively go crazy for. In fact the look on the pre lci dash has the screens much more well integrated into the car which I honestly prefer. Again not really a reason to get one over the other but just how I see it.

That said. I think if you find a very nice spec low mileage pre lci piece I say go for it. If you find a better deal on lci which will be hard because they haven’t depreciated enough yet then get that. But really I don’t think either one is worth going crazy for. I say find the nicest lowest mileage car with the spec you like the most and move on it. Lci or not. They are both very nice. I don’t think the pre lci looks dated at all. In fact looks a lil more aggressive honestly. But I like the look of the lci too so just my honest opinion.

[R///MG]

Originally Posted by Savoy2001

So my view is this. The lci additions changes are ok. Meaning in a take or or leave it sort of way. I deliberately ordered a23 x5mc last year because I didn’t want a heavier car. The suv is heavy enough and the mild hybrid as we see adds little to nothing to the whole package. That said the different screens are again nice I guess but but that nice honestly. Nothing I would actively go crazy for. In fact the look on the pre lci dash has the screens much more well integrated into the car which I honestly prefer. Again not really a reason to get one over the other but just how I see it.

That said. I think if you find a very nice spec low mileage pre lci piece I say go for it. If you find a better deal on lci which will be hard because they haven’t depreciated enough yet then get that. But really I don’t think either one is worth going crazy for. I say find the nicest lowest mileage car with the spec you like the most and move on it. Lci or not. They are both very nice. I don’t think the pre lci looks dated at all. In fact looks a lil more aggressive honestly. But I like the look of the lci too so just my honest opinion.

The weight increase on the LCI you don't notice at all. In fact the added electric motor has eliminated the turbo lag the pre LCI has in comfort mode. If you want to drive around in M1 or M2 mode all the time with the engine in higher revs all the time getting terrible milage just to eliminate lag that's an option too. I personally like that I can get better MPG and be easier on the IC engine and not feel any lag.

I will say you're right in the interior design of the pre LCI vs the LCi. The hood over the driver side dash is something they should have kept. Not having that hood takes away a bit of the sportiness design and makes it feel a little more like a generic smart car somewhat like a Tesla.

[x622]

Originally Posted by R///MG

The weight increase on the LCI you don't notice at all. In fact the added electric motor has eliminated the turbo lag the pre LCI has in comfort mode. If you want to drive around in M1 or M2 mode all the time with the engine in higher revs all the time getting terrible milage just to eliminate lag that's an option too. I personally like that I can get better MPG and be easier on the IC engine and not feel any lag.

I will say you're right in the interior design of the pre LCI vs the LCi. The hood over the driver side dash is something they should have kept. Not having that hood takes away a bit of the sportiness design and makes it feel a little more like a generic smart car somewhat like a Tesla.

You bought a twin turbo v8 SUV with all wheel drive and are concerned with fuel economy?

My stance is I ordered the pre-lci because of the continued feature strip. Lack of rear comfort access and the general watering down of the brand is not for me. Next car will be a DBX707 likely unless BMW can somehow pull their head out of their collective asses. Dukec needs to be hung.

[-cj-]

Regarding the extra weight from the mild hybrid.. I watched a review (Carwow perhaps?) that had a 3.5 sec 0-60 time.

That's pretty impressive IMO. I don't know if anyone has tuned the new motor, but these are the times I'm aware of:

3.2s (tuned, pre LCI)
3.5s stock lci
3.7s stock pre-LCI, competition
3.9s stock pre-LCI, regular X5M

I'd love to see what a tuned LCI would do..

And if you don't care about that, it sounds like you can drive this thing in comfort with stop/start enabled all the time. I usually kept my 2020 X5MC in comfort mode unless I was having fun, but I always disabled stop/start.

[Savoy2001]

Originally Posted by R///MG

The weight increase on the LCI you don't notice at all. In fact the added electric motor has eliminated the turbo lag the pre LCI has in comfort mode. If you want to drive around in M1 or M2 mode all the time with the engine in higher revs all the time getting terrible milage just to eliminate lag that's an option too. I personally like that I can get better MPG and be easier on the IC engine and not feel any lag.

I will say you're right in the interior design of the pre LCI vs the LCi. The hood over the driver side dash is something they should have kept. Not having that hood takes away a bit of the sportiness design and makes it feel a little more like a generic smart car somewhat like a Tesla.

The weight is there. Notice or not. The truck is heavy enough it doesn’t need any more weight. Especially when the added weight and complexity of the battery junk brings nothing in terms of preference to the table. I feel almost no appreciable lag in comfort mode. I dd in m1 mode with everything maxed except the chassis in softest setting. Trans in the second s slot. Revs aren’t to high unless your getting on the throttle or brakes heavy etc. I like the car to feel a lil aggressive and more performance feeling so that’s how I drive. Now with the engine on the softest setting the might be a bit of lag I guess but not terrible as it need tuned to be relaxed intentionally. I don’t think this silly battery system has much to with the lag in comfort. I believe that’s an intentional tune decision on the pre lci. Just like the slightly firmer suspension on the pre lci is slightly stiffer. Again I believe inherently baked into the cake by design. My m2 is exert thing maxed including chassis and trans on 3 and awd to sport. I use auto shifting abs sometimes manual depending on mood. Love the car.

Oh last thing. I get same mileage with engine in maxed out sport off in the laziest setting. I don’t see a difference.

[xmanpro]

The lci is stiffer compared to pre-lci in all modes. Feels faster when not tuned. I’ll tune mine after break in period. IDrive 8 has so many features it will take me a year to learn. The driving professional plus is better steering, more smooth, lane changes are more reliable and predictable compared to the pre-lci.

I miss the dedicated front view camera button.

[R///MG]

Originally Posted by Savoy2001

The weight is there. Notice or not. The truck is heavy enough it doesn’t need any more weight. Especially when the added weight and complexity of the battery junk brings nothing in terms of preference to the table. I feel almost no appreciable lag in comfort mode. I dd in m1 mode with everything maxed except the chassis in softest setting. Trans in the second s slot. Revs aren’t to high unless your getting on the throttle or brakes heavy etc. I like the car to feel a lil aggressive and more performance feeling so that’s how I drive. Now with the engine on the softest setting the might be a bit of lag I guess but not terrible as it need tuned to be relaxed intentionally. I don’t think this silly battery system has much to with the lag in comfort. I believe that’s an intentional tune decision on the pre lci. Just like the slightly firmer suspension on the pre lci is slightly stiffer. Again I believe inherently baked into the cake by design. My m2 is exert thing maxed including chassis and trans on 3 and awd to sport. I use auto shifting abs sometimes manual depending on mood. Love the car.

Oh last thing. I get same mileage with engine in maxed out sport off in the laziest setting. I don’t see a difference.

I think the increase of 12hp and 150 pounds of torque from the battery and electric motor more than negates the 350-400 pound in weight increase. This isn't a track car. That's what an M4 is for. The point is LCI has zero lag in any mode you put it in. Even the top softest fuel efficient mode zero lag. The LCI just feels quicker in all aspects to the pre LCI.

Also it's not possible to be driving a car at a higher RPM and still get the same MPG as you get at the lower RPM.

[Alan l.]

LCI is stiffer? I couldn’t imagine it any stiffer than the pre LCI.

Also isn’t peak HP and torque the same between both cars?

I read mix reviews about which is faster. AutotopNL got better results with the pre LCI doing a top speed run.

One thing to also consider is there is an increase chance with issues due to the mild hybrid change. The regular X5/X7 forums def had a uptick of drivetrain issues being reported.

[Game Changer]

Great information as I am in the market for the LCI variant. Someone mentioned gas mileage concerns with driving in a certain mode vs the LCI. I do consider gas mileage when looking to purchase a vehicle. It's bizarre to hear some say if you are concerned about gas mileage than you probably shouldn't be looking at this type of vehicle. That's true and I can tell you if the gas mileage were any worst, I would not consider this vehicle. I had a Jeep SRT8 when gas prices went up to 4.50 a gallon (years ago) and I was averaging 10-11 mpg on my daily hwy commute (6-7 mpg if you're flooring it!). My fuel budget mirrored my car note. It really takes the enjoyment out of the veh. when you get terrible mpg, based on my experience. So, to be able to get 17-18 mpg hwy with this platform, this is great! I currently have a C8 which gets incredible mpg vs its performance...sorry to digress! Also owned a 22 M3XD which is a great veh. I will post up once I purchase. Thanks again for the info!

[HMN]

Had mine for almost 9 months now. It does feel heavier because of the battery.
I haven't noticed any improvement in fuel consumption as opposed to the previous model.
Also it's a bit stiffer than pre-LCI.

[Savoy2001]

It had to be a bit stiffer in order to handle in a similar fashion because they added weight. The hp numbers are the same as pre lci which again I find ridiculous. Why add the complexity and weight of these batteries scad crap and not increase the performance? They added just enough tq to make sure the 0-60 and 0-100 times were the same or super close yet no increase in overall performance. Notice how bmw never published any direct info on performance numbers from the lci drivetrain? Ya gee I wonder why. Because they added weight and complexity without a gain. Believe me if there was an appreciable gain in performance they would have been shouting it from the roof tops. They have been Uber quiet for a reason. As far as mpg it’s decent pre lci and lci. I get a an average of 17 across the board local and highway and that’s with getting on it plenty so all in all not bad at all. To be honest the differences between the two are so subtle that like I said depending on which you get the better deal on condition etc is the one I would go for. Unless you’re absolutely in love with the new horizontal grill and front end and the tacked on screen look inside the cabin then I say they are both nice. Pre lci being a touch more aggressive looking imo.

[R///MG]

Originally Posted by Savoy2001

It had to be a bit stiffer in order to handle in a similar fashion because they added weight. The hp numbers are the same as pre lci which again I find ridiculous. Why add the complexity and weight of these batteries scad crap and not increase the performance? They added just enough tq to make sure the 0-60 and 0-100 times were the same or super close yet no increase in overall performance. Notice how bmw never published any direct info on performance numbers from the lci drivetrain? Ya gee I wonder why. Because they added weight and complexity without a gain. Believe me if there was an appreciable gain in performance they would have been shouting it from the roof tops. They have been Uber quiet for a reason. As far as mpg it’s decent pre lci and lci. I get a an average of 17 across the board local and highway and that’s with getting on it plenty so all in all not bad at all. To be honest the differences between the two are so subtle that like I said depending on which you get the better deal on condition etc is the one I would go for. Unless you’re absolutely in love with the new horizontal grill and front end and the tacked on screen look inside the cabin then I say they are both nice. Pre lci being a touch more aggressive looking imo.

I had my pre LCI for an additional 3 weeks after I picked up my LCI. I thought about asking a buddy of mine to drive it and do a drag test with it against my LCI, but my LCI wasn't broken-in in time. I can say in all modes though the LCI is quicker off the line. Now will that hold up down a quarter mile or half mile I can't say. Hopefully, Carswow can do a comparison test. I should also say that the exhaust note in Sport Plus mode on the LCI is noticeably louder and lot more aggressive in tone. Now this could be because mine came with the carbon fiber titanium tips, but I can't imagine that alone changed the exhaust note. Maybe, someone with a pre LCI that got the tips changed can chime in and say if they noticed a sound change after the switch.

[xmanpro]

Exhaust is definitely more pronounced with the LCI. Feels faster on the ass Dyno. Can’t wait to get the racechip installed after break in.

[-cj-]

Originally Posted by Savoy2001

It had to be a bit stiffer in order to handle in a similar fashion because they added weight. The hp numbers are the same as pre lci which again I find ridiculous. Why add the complexity and weight of these batteries scad crap and not increase the performance? They added just enough tq to make sure the 0-60 and 0-100 times were the same or super close yet no increase in overall performance. Notice how bmw never published any direct info on performance numbers from the lci drivetrain? Ya gee I wonder why. Because they added weight and complexity without a gain. Believe me if there was an appreciable gain in performance they would have been shouting it from the roof tops. They have been Uber quiet for a reason. As far as mpg it’s decent pre lci and lci. I get a an average of 17 across the board local and highway and that’s with getting on it plenty so all in all not bad at all. To be honest the differences between the two are so subtle that like I said depending on which you get the better deal on condition etc is the one I would go for. Unless you’re absolutely in love with the new horizontal grill and front end and the tacked on screen look inside the cabin then I say they are both nice. Pre lci being a touch more aggressive looking imo.

Usually you see the hp and tq on a dyno graph. Like when people compare a comp to a non comp, they usually just see the extra hp and assume it isn’t a big deal. But on the dyno it’ll tell a different story. Remember that hp and tq are peak numbers, but does very little to tell you about the power band through the rpm range.

Also, maybe I’m thinking of the XM and it’s not applicable to the X5M LCI, but a reviewer mentioned the active sway bars were 48v powered to deal with the extra weight. But don’t quote me..

[imperfectluck]

The S68 was mentioned to not be essentially a S63 carry over and ground up is different (including its turbos) so I’d imagine the exhaust tone could certainly be different in that regards.

I’d imagine the performance of the MHEV would be felt as the S68 will also be making its way into the G90 which is already causing a ruckus with its weight penalty. BMW has been quiet on the technical details of the engine which was surprising when it hit the G05 platform though.

[x622]

Originally Posted by xmanpro

Exhaust is definitely more pronounced with the LCI. Feels faster on the ass Dyno. Can’t wait to get the racechip installed after break in.

That's the speakers in the door, not the car itself. Disable it and hear the truth

[Savoy2001]

Originally Posted by imperfectluck

The S68 was mentioned to not be essentially a S63 carry over and ground up is different (including its turbos) so I’d imagine the exhaust tone could certainly be different in that regards.

I’d imagine the performance of the MHEV would be felt as the S68 will also be making its way into the G90 which is already causing a ruckus with its weight penalty. BMW has been quiet on the technical details of the engine which was surprising when it hit the G05 platform though.

It's really not surprising. They don't have much to tout so that's your reason. Believe me marketing depts love to tout new features and benefits when they can. There simply isn't any with this mild hybrid. Let's see. Did we save you any mpg? barely. Did we make any more power. No but there slightly more tq to make up for the heavy ass batteries. Are the 0-60 times improved? nope. Is the 1/4 mile time improved? nope. Is it pulling faster lap times on any tracks? nope. Is the car heavier overall for no benefit? yup Is it more expensive? yup.

Should I continue?

[-cj-]

Originally Posted by Savoy2001

It's really not surprising. They don't have much to tout so that's your reason. Believe me marketing depts love to tout new features and benefits when they can. There simply isn't any with this mild hybrid. Let's see. Did we save you any mpg? barely. Did we make any more power. No but there slightly more tq to make up for the heavy ass batteries. Are the 0-60 times improved? nope. Is the 1/4 mile time improved? nope. Is it pulling faster lap times on any tracks? nope. Is the car heavier overall for no benefit? yup Is it more expensive? yup.

Should I continue?

Where are you getting this information from? I’m pretty sure it was Carwow that timed a 3.5s 0-60. I believe the 1/4 time was also a little quicker.