HELP! E92 2008 iDrive vs 2009 iDrive dilemma
Discussion
I've just placed a £1k deposit on a 2008 335d M Sport Coupe from a BMW dealer. I had been looking at 2009 cars but all the ones I enquired about had already sold before I found this one. It's in superb condition but I had no idea the iDrive was updated in 2009 and included a new HDD, higher res screen and better controls with shortcut buttons.
Is the 2008 iDrive OK or will it drive me nuts? The difference in price to a 2009 model isn't that much more. Should I cancel my order and get an '09?
I'm supposed to be picking it up in the morning but having that niggling feeling I should have got an '09!
Is the 2008 iDrive OK or will it drive me nuts? The difference in price to a 2009 model isn't that much more. Should I cancel my order and get an '09?
I'm supposed to be picking it up in the morning but having that niggling feeling I should have got an '09!
Top lurking!
You are supposed to pick the car up today? Seems a bit late to pull out of the deal?
Personally, I would go for the updated iDrive as the screen is bigger, it is HDD based and the interface is a lot better. If anything, you would get the difference in outlay back when selling again as it is quite a substantial improvement.
If you ends up with the 2008 model, congratulations. There are other options than the nav that makes a difference so if it came with e.g. upgraded sound system, M Sport and leather, then good for you.
You are supposed to pick the car up today? Seems a bit late to pull out of the deal?
Personally, I would go for the updated iDrive as the screen is bigger, it is HDD based and the interface is a lot better. If anything, you would get the difference in outlay back when selling again as it is quite a substantial improvement.
If you ends up with the 2008 model, congratulations. There are other options than the nav that makes a difference so if it came with e.g. upgraded sound system, M Sport and leather, then good for you.
I spent a great deal of time and effort specifically seeking out a car with the newer MY09 iDrive when I got my E92 and I'm very glad I did. It's far more modern and nicer to use than the older system - and the higher resolution screen is much nicer. The Navigation is pretty good too - and it fixes all sorts of pathetic usability features with the old system like the fact you couldn't have the map in the large display and the entertainment details in the assist window.
If I was buying another E92 I wouldnt' entertain any that didn't have the newer iDrive.
The snag is that its REALLY hard to find. All E92's built since September 2008 have it - but virtually all 58 and 09 plate E92's were built BEFORE September 08. I guess there was a lot of unsold stock kicking around due to the recession or something? Mine was a Sep 08 and had it because the spec was unusual and it was therefore a fresh factory order not a car from stock.
If I was buying another E92 I wouldnt' entertain any that didn't have the newer iDrive.
The snag is that its REALLY hard to find. All E92's built since September 2008 have it - but virtually all 58 and 09 plate E92's were built BEFORE September 08. I guess there was a lot of unsold stock kicking around due to the recession or something? Mine was a Sep 08 and had it because the spec was unusual and it was therefore a fresh factory order not a car from stock.
rassi said:
Top lurking!
You are supposed to pick the car up today? Seems a bit late to pull out of the deal?
Personally, I would go for the updated iDrive as the screen is bigger, it is HDD based and the interface is a lot better. If anything, you would get the difference in outlay back when selling again as it is quite a substantial improvement.
If you ends up with the 2008 model, congratulations. There are other options than the nav that makes a difference so if it came with e.g. upgraded sound system, M Sport and leather, then good for you.
Yes, bit of a lurker - lol!You are supposed to pick the car up today? Seems a bit late to pull out of the deal?
Personally, I would go for the updated iDrive as the screen is bigger, it is HDD based and the interface is a lot better. If anything, you would get the difference in outlay back when selling again as it is quite a substantial improvement.
If you ends up with the 2008 model, congratulations. There are other options than the nav that makes a difference so if it came with e.g. upgraded sound system, M Sport and leather, then good for you.
Pick it up tomorrow so yes, it is a bit late to pull out and I wouldn't feel right doing so but when spending over £20k it is worth considering all options. It does have the individual sound upgrade plus front parking sensors which are bonus options.
NIIKME said:
I have had both. It Wouldnt be a deal breaker for me if the rest of the car is right. I dont really understand the fuss tbh, yes we would all rather have the most up to date version but they both do the same things and require minimal training...
That's good to hear then. Yes, rest of the car is good - has done 30k+ miles but interior looks like it's only done 10k.Fox- said:
I spent a great deal of time and effort specifically seeking out a car with the newer MY09 iDrive when I got my E92 and I'm very glad I did. It's far more modern and nicer to use than the older system - and the higher resolution screen is much nicer. The Navigation is pretty good too - and it fixes all sorts of pathetic usability features with the old system like the fact you couldn't have the map in the large display and the entertainment details in the assist window.
If I was buying another E92 I wouldnt' entertain any that didn't have the newer iDrive.
The snag is that its REALLY hard to find. All E92's built since September 2008 have it - but virtually all 58 and 09 plate E92's were built BEFORE September 08. I guess there was a lot of unsold stock kicking around due to the recession or something? Mine was a Sep 08 and had it because the spec was unusual and it was therefore a fresh factory order not a car from stock.
That's what I thought but I think I'll just go for it for now and aim to upgrade in 2 years time. I thought I'd researched everything but missed the iDrive upgrade, doh!If I was buying another E92 I wouldnt' entertain any that didn't have the newer iDrive.
The snag is that its REALLY hard to find. All E92's built since September 2008 have it - but virtually all 58 and 09 plate E92's were built BEFORE September 08. I guess there was a lot of unsold stock kicking around due to the recession or something? Mine was a Sep 08 and had it because the spec was unusual and it was therefore a fresh factory order not a car from stock.
Cheers for all the comments.
texasjohn said:
If it has individual audio system I would still go forwards with the deal. That's a very rare option and will make resale quite easy.
Really? That's cool then. Must admit, I've looked at loads of cars and this is the only one I've seen with it. Do you know how much it was as an option?I optioned the Harman Kardon system in a 330Ci Sport 10 years ago and that was perfectly adequate so I'm guessing the Individual Audio will be pretty good?
The Harman Kardon on E46 (330ci) is not a patch on the Harman Kardon Logic 7 system on the E90-series cars. Adequate, yes, and better than the standard set up though for sure.
On the E90s the individual system cost £1450, it really is very rare mostly because you can get the Logic7 system (called Harman Kardon these days) for about £900 and Logic7 is more than good enough for most people. In fact, the 'business loudspeaker' system at £400 is more than good enough for most people.
As a result, Logic7 is quite rare (although reasonably easy to find on 330/335s) and the Individual is very seldom seen. Must be on less than 1% of all 3 series cars, as it is only available on 6 cylinder cars.
Go on the bmw.co.uk car configurator, configure an E92 6 cylinder car and have a look under 'Options'.
Your car should have silver coloured door speakers if it has individual. All the other options or the basic stereo have black door speakers.
Go on autotrader and select Used BMW, then type "individual audio system" (include the inverted commas) into the keyword search. You won't find many results!
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/bmw/3...
On the E90s the individual system cost £1450, it really is very rare mostly because you can get the Logic7 system (called Harman Kardon these days) for about £900 and Logic7 is more than good enough for most people. In fact, the 'business loudspeaker' system at £400 is more than good enough for most people.
As a result, Logic7 is quite rare (although reasonably easy to find on 330/335s) and the Individual is very seldom seen. Must be on less than 1% of all 3 series cars, as it is only available on 6 cylinder cars.
Go on the bmw.co.uk car configurator, configure an E92 6 cylinder car and have a look under 'Options'.
Your car should have silver coloured door speakers if it has individual. All the other options or the basic stereo have black door speakers.
Go on autotrader and select Used BMW, then type "individual audio system" (include the inverted commas) into the keyword search. You won't find many results!
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/bmw/3...
Edited by texasjohn on Sunday 22 April 20:39
That's great news then. I worked in car audio for 13 years and used to have our audio demo cars with £20k+ sound systems as my company car so will be interesting to see how the system is. I'm guessing the factory EQ settings will need tweaking to get the best from it - they always do.
F1ash said:
That's great news then. I worked in car audio for 13 years and used to have our audio demo cars with £20k+ sound systems as my company car so will be interesting to see how the system is. I'm guessing the factory EQ settings will need tweaking to get the best from it - they always do.
I'd be interested to hear what you think of it. I have the Professional hi-fi in mine (one up from bottom) and it sounds pretty good. I'd imagine the Individual sounds incredible.As for the IDrive - my car has the 'older' one and I think it's fine. Sure, the newer one brings improvements but it wouldn't be a deal-breaker for me.
Don't forget to start a Readers Car thread
Gassing Station | BMW General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff