[adc]

Greetings X2 heads, I just joined your cult this past weekend.

Our 2014 X3 has reached the mileage where it needs $$$$ to continue, being loaded to the gills with all possible options. So I’ve decided to sell it, and was aimlessly looking for a replacement, hopefully still from the BMW family.

540i… drove it, too soft and lazy steering.
X3… been there done that.
X1… not enough to distinguish.
3 series G generation… big and meh. And I hate the instrument cluster.
3 series F generation wagon… now we’re talking, but couldn’t find the one special enough with the options I want. Kept looking for one though…

On a whim, after visiting my mechanic to fix some X3 issue, I stopped at a dealer and test drove a 2019 X2 M35i, because why not. I had always liked the shape and form factor. As soon as I turned the wheel getting out of their cramped lot knew my search was over.

Just… not that one, didn’t have the right options for me, and wasn’t certified. So I tried placing an order. Nope, order book is closed with no eta. WTF. I started looking at national ads for one with the specs I wanted, and found a used 2022 in Chicagoland. Hmmm…

So never having visited the city, my wife and I hopped on a plane, bought the car, enjoyed the rest of the day sight seeing, and brought the car home this Sunday.

As you well know, it’s a blast to drive. One of the most resolved BMWs of the last decade IMO, with a clear mission and perfect delivery of it. A nervous little ball of energy, always up for a romp, infectious character. Yet somehow, at least on the 19” wheels and DDC, comfortable for a 10 hr drive with no problem. Well done BMW. Too bad it seems to be a well kept secret…

If I was truly devious, I’d throw a set of stickies on it and go embarrass some fancy stuff at the track. Hmmm… year isn’t over yet.

So now, the battle for the keys has begun. My son is suddenly offering his mint E46 to drive, my wife is arguing that it isn’t yet Z4 weather and as for me, well I’m the registered owner right?

Looking forward to be part of the community.

[rice_rocket88]

Haha very awesome story! Welcome!

[rounderman]

Welcome to the addiction. I really like the car. I will be buying mine off its lease in April. It checks a lot of boxes, fast, different, with an air of practically. I also am old and love the ride height. My back appreciates it over a sedan.

Enjoy the car, post some pics, stay safe

[//TMT]

Originally Posted by adc

... A nervous little ball of energy, always up for a romp, infectious character. Yet somehow, at least on the 19” wheels and DDC, comfortable for a 10 hr drive with no problem.

Curious, isn't it, that it transitions so well? Drop it into ECO mode on that drive and you'll get in excess of 35mpg. But slap it in double-Sport and it's an entirely different beast. Fun for all uses!

Lose the runflats and code out the piped-in ASD, for even more satisfaction.

Pics would be nice to see. We need more 2022 M35i shots.

[GoinDahnTahn]

Great story!.....i have one of my own X2 stories that is not dissimilar....

I had purchased 2 cars in summer and fall of 2019....i picked up a brand new 2019 Acura TLX ASPEC, which was fantastic, although not the color combo i wanted (mine was red exterior with black interior; i wanted blue with red) but it still looked and felt great. Really enjoyed the car and then in the fall i purchased a used 2016 Honda CRV to drive in the winter so i could keep the Acura nice. (I live in PA)

Well the pandemic hit at the start of 2020 and did very little driving as a result. In May of 2020, I went to check Carvana site for what my Acura was worth by doing the cash offer (just not accepting) and was reasonable but not unexpected. Then in Oct of 2021 i decided to do that again, but this time i was shocked by how much the offer was! It was over $12,000 more than in May of 2020. I felt like id be a fool not to accept it, even though i loved that car. So i went through with it, receiving over 90% of what i paid for the car.

But this left me with the CRV, which was never intended to be my primary vehicle, and it left me itching to replace it every time i got out of it, lol.

So last week, i decided to do the same thing with my CRV and again to my surprise, receiving $4000 more than i paid for it in 2019.

I had wanted a BMW M3 for probably more than 20 years and just never went through with it, mostly because of the fact that it was so impractical. High cost and RWD so would need a winter car, etc. But then one day i was out with a friend of mine and we stopped at his sister's who has a BMW X1 that i hadnt seen before. It was very nice and so i decided to research it. During my research I became pretty excited to learn about the X2 and the fact that it has an M version. Turned out to be exactly what i needed, an AWD vehicle with an M model....sporty and yet practical with AWD and a hatchback for hauling things.

So i did a build on the BMW site and of course, i chose the M35i with Blue exterior and Red interior plus all the other bells & whistles that you might as well pick when making these builds, lol. I thought fat chance ill actually find anything close to my build available in this market. I ran a Google image search for "BMW X2 blue" because i was wanted to see some actual pictures of this blue rather than the somewhat fake feel of the build pics. One of the nice pics i found in the image results happened to be from AutoTrader site, so i clicked on it to go to the page itself and turned out to be a not unreasonably distant BMW Dealership with a brand new 2022 in stock. I went to the dealer's site and from what i could tell, it was almost exactly the same as my build. I contacted them and they immediately responded with a phone call. We went down the list of what their in stock car had and compared to my build and the two were only different by 5 prettty minor options (2 of mine missing (adaptive cruise, parking assist); 3 of theirs added that i hadnt (20" wheels, black roof rails, wireless charging).

So that was it, i bought it and two days later travelled over 200 miles to go get it. It is absolutely fantastic!!

The only thing i have found disappointing is the audio system, it does not sound great, so i am looking into improving it. The audio system in my Acura was far and away better than the one in my X2.

I will also surely need to get winter wheels+tires, since these 20" wheels with performance (summer) tires on it are not going to cut it in PA winters.....so im looking into that as well. (this is one of the option differences between my virtual build and this actual build and unfortunately, this one will cost me some money, lol)

This is my first BMW car (I have had only Acura and Honda all my life (13 total)) and its been a great experience.

The attached pics are from when i picked it up at the dealer last week.

[//TMT]

Originally Posted by GoinDahnTahn

The only thing i have found disappointing is the audio system, it does not sound great, so i am looking into improving it.

Upgrade the speakers first. They're kinda crappy and marked "Made in VietNam", or at least mine were (not the HK version). I dropped Focals in the front doors and center console, very satisfied with the result. Many aftermarket options exist for amps, subs, etc. if you want to go further.

[adc]

Originally Posted by GoinDahnTahn

Great story!.....i have one of my own X2 stories that is not dissimilar....

I had purchased 2 cars in summer and fall of 2019....i picked up a brand new 2019 Acura TLX ASPEC, which was fantastic, although not the color combo i wanted (mine was red exterior with black interior; i wanted blue with red) but it still looked and felt great. Really enjoyed the car and then in the fall i purchased a used 2016 Honda CRV to drive in the winter so i could keep the Acura nice. (I live in PA)

Well the pandemic hit at the start of 2020 and did very little driving as a result. In May of 2020, I went to check Carvana site for what my Acura was worth by doing the cash offer (just not accepting) and was reasonable but not unexpected. Then in Oct of 2021 i decided to do that again, but this time i was shocked by how much the offer was! It was over $12,000 more than in May of 2020. I felt like id be a fool not to accept it, even though i loved that car. So i went through with it, receiving over 90% of what i paid for the car.

But this left me with the CRV, which was never intended to be my primary vehicle, and it left me itching to replace it every time i got out of it, lol.

So last week, i decided to do the same thing with my CRV and again to my surprise, receiving $4000 more than i paid for it in 2019.

I had wanted a BMW M3 for probably more than 20 years and just never went through with it, mostly because of the fact that it was so impractical. High cost and RWD so would need a winter car, etc. But then one day i was out with a friend of mine and we stopped at his sister's who has a BMW X1 that i hadnt seen before. It was very nice and so i decided to research it. During my research I became pretty excited to learn about the X2 and the fact that it has an M version. Turned out to be exactly what i needed, an AWD vehicle with an M model....sporty and yet practical with AWD and a hatchback for hauling things.

So i did a build on the BMW site and of course, i chose the M35i with Blue exterior and Red interior plus all the other bells & whistles that you might as well pick when making these builds, lol. I thought fat chance ill actually find anything close to my build available in this market. I ran a Google image search for "BMW X2 blue" because i was wanted to see some actual pictures of this blue rather than the somewhat fake feel of the build pics. One of the nice pics i found in the image results happened to be from AutoTrader site, so i clicked on it to go to the page itself and turned out to be a not unreasonably distant BMW Dealership with a brand new 2022 in stock. I went to the dealer's site and from what i could tell, it was almost exactly the same as my build. I contacted them and they immediately responded with a phone call. We went down the list of what their in stock car had and compared to my build and the two were only different by 5 prettty minor options (2 of mine missing (adaptive cruise, parking assist); 3 of theirs added that i hadnt (20" wheels, black roof rails, wireless charging).

So that was it, i bought it and two days later travelled over 200 miles to go get it. It is absolutely fantastic!!

The only thing i have found disappointing is the audio system, it does not sound great, so i am looking into improving it. The audio system in my Acura was far and away better than the one in my X2.

I will also surely need to get winter wheels+tires, since these 20" wheels with performance (summer) tires on it are not going to cut it in PA winters.....so im looking into that as well. (this is one of the option differences between my virtual build and this actual build and unfortunately, this one will cost me some money, lol)

This is my first BMW car (I have had only Acura and Honda all my life (13 total)) and its been a great experience.

The attached pics are from when i picked it up at the dealer last week.

Haha, great story and well purchased.

But you do know they make an AWD M3 these days, right? Personally I’m not a fan of the styling and size/weight increase at all, but it does seem to have the right driving experience. And my M3 with Conti DWS tires does ok most of the winter here in MD, many people run it with real winter tires further up north than PA. I’ve always run my M3’s in the winter, for more than 20 years. I’m just saying, next year if you feel the need to switch again, give these things a try. Worth having one at least once in your life.

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by adc

Haha, great story and well purchased.

But you do know they make an AWD M3 these days, right? Personally I’m not a fan of the styling and size/weight increase at all, but it does seem to have the right driving experience. And my M3 with Conti DWS tires does ok most of the winter here in MD, many people run it with real winter tires further up north than PA. I’ve always run my M3’s in the winter, for more than 20 years. I’m just saying, next year if you feel the need to switch again, give these things a try. Worth having one at least once in your life.

oh, wow, i didnt even look at an M3, since i had just assumed it wouldnt work for me....i had no idea there is now an AWD version of the M3....oh well, figures right...

my wife loves my X2 and now she wants me to research the X3 to potentially replace her Honda Passport, lol...so we'll see if anything comes out of that...

as far as winter tires go, i was looking at TireRack and experimented with packages....so far i built a package with Continental VikingContact7 with Moda MD29 wheels....pics below

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by //TMT

Upgrade the speakers first. They're kinda crappy and marked "Made in VietNam", or at least mine were (not the HK version). I dropped Focals in the front doors and center console, very satisfied with the result. Many aftermarket options exist for amps, subs, etc. if you want to go further.

i was thinking about starting with an amp and subwoofers and then replace speakers if that didnt do the trick....since the whole system seems weak and very high frequency.....with no rear speakers or sub, presumably because of the hatch, only door speakers and one front speaker, its pretty bad, have to say....

[rounderman]

again welcome to the addition. beautiful car, nice Pics. I have 19" all seasons on mine and when I drive even in winter it goes well. Snows and the car will be a real winter beast. These are rare fun and practical vehicles. enjoy the ride and watch out for your right foot, mine tends to get heavy and this will suck the headlights out of an Acura (I had 3, Legend GS coupe and an 08 and 10 TSX 4 cylindrical but the last one was stick)

Acura's are good cars but this is light years different

enjoy the ride, stay safe

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by rounderman

again welcome to the addition. beautiful car, nice Pics. I have 19" all seasons on mine and when I drive even in winter it goes well. Snows and the car will be a real winter beast. These are rare fun and practical vehicles. enjoy the ride and watch out for your right foot, mine tends to get heavy and this will suck the headlights out of an Acura (I had 3, Legend GS coupe and an 08 and 10 TSX 4 cylindrical but the last one was stick)

Acura's are good cars but this is light years different

enjoy the ride, stay safe

thanks!....i would have been fine with 19" all seasons for sure, but figured since i already have the 20" wheels with performance tires on it, then prob made more sense for me to add a set of winter only wheels+tires than to completely switch over all year with 19" all seasons, and cheaper because if i went the all year all season route, id want BMW wheels on it, which would cost prob twice as much...

yes its def a lot different than my Acura....i included a pic of that below....this BMW with 4-cyl 305hp is for sure peppier than my 6-cyl with 290hp...

.

[billnchristy]

The character of this car is so unrefined and that's probably the only thing I miss from moving to the 440i gc. The gc is as laid back as it gets but can be rowdy with sport plus, the m35i is like a little dog on a chain, constantly barking and trying to get free. It's a fun car, mine was starting to scare me with looming warranty expiration and drivetrain malfunctions but if I had piece of mind I would have rode it out.

Honestly the 440 doesn't feel much faster but like I said, it's so laid back that I think it's a perception thing. I also haven't beat on it yet since I'm trying to be a goodboy with break in. We'll see.

Scrappy little bastard, isn't it?

[adc]

Originally Posted by GoinDahnTahn

i was thinking about starting with an amp and subwoofers and then replace speakers if that didnt do the trick....since the whole system seems weak and very high frequency.....with no rear speakers or sub, presumably because of the hatch, only door speakers and one front speaker, its pretty bad, have to say....

You don’t have the HK system?

Edit: l suggest you look for OEM integrated systems like BavSound or Alpha One. They may give you the opportunity to upgrade in Stages, so you can stop spending money when the sound quality becomes acceptable to you.

https://www.bavsound.com/
I’ve had success with them in the past (but true, it was on HK equipped cars which have a more powerful amp). There is also an amp upgrade I think but I have no direct experience with it.

Some people also like the Alpha One upgrade, I understand it may be higher SQ but also more expensive.
https://www.bimmer-tech.net/speakers...lifier-for-bmw

[adc]

Originally Posted by billnchristy

The character of this car is so unrefined and that's probably the only thing I miss from moving to the 440i gc. The gc is as laid back as it gets but can be rowdy with sport plus, the m35i is like a little dog on a chain, constantly barking and trying to get free. It's a fun car, mine was starting to scare me with looming warranty expiration and drivetrain malfunctions but if I had piece of mind I would have rode it out.

Honestly the 440 doesn't feel much faster but like I said, it's so laid back that I think it's a perception thing. I also haven't beat on it yet since I'm trying to be a goodboy with break in. We'll see.

Scrappy little bastard, isn't it?

I intend to refinance through PenFed, it’s a lower interest rate anyway, and down the line before factory warranty expires to add their Route 66 extended warranty. I’ve done this in the past, great piece of mind and it is transferable.

[//TMT]

Originally Posted by GoinDahnTahn

i was thinking about starting with an amp and subwoofers and then replace speakers if that didnt do the trick....since the whole system seems weak and very high frequency.....with no rear speakers or sub, presumably because of the hatch, only door speakers and one front speaker, its pretty bad, have to say....

Err, it has speakers in both front and rear doors, two quote-subs-unquote under each front seat, plus the center front. The door speakers are nothing great though. With the higher-grade audio, the speakers are better plus there are tweeters, but my understanding is the HK systems have been unavailable since 2021 due to chip shortages or whatever. If you have one, that's different.

OTOH, maybe your 2022 has different stuff from my 2020?

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by adc

You don’t have the HK system?

Edit: l suggest you look for OEM integrated systems like BavSound or Alpha One. They may give you the opportunity to upgrade in Stages, so you can stop spending money when the sound quality becomes acceptable to you.

https://www.bavsound.com/
I’ve had success with them in the past (but true, it was on HK equipped cars which have a more powerful amp). There is also an amp upgrade I think but I have no direct experience with it.

Some people also like the Alpha One upgrade, I understand it may be higher SQ but also more expensive.
https://www.bimmer-tech.net/speakers...lifier-for-bmw

no, i didnt even see an option to add the Harmon-Kardon system....does your 2022 have it?

mine def does not have the HK system.

This site is very helpful, i had no idea....thanks!

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by //TMT

Err, it has speakers in both front and rear doors, two quote-subs-unquote under each front seat, plus the center front. The door speakers are nothing great though. With the higher-grade audio, the speakers are better plus there are tweeters, but my understanding is the HK systems have been unavailable since 2021 due to chip shortages or whatever. If you have one, that's different.

OTOH, maybe your 2022 has different stuff from my 2020?

oh, maybe that's it then....perhaps was suppose to have HK but not because of the shortage, didnt think of that.

dont think i have subs under the seats.....i looked the other day, maybe im missing something....looks like all i have are 5 total, one small in each door and one front center.....

[//TMT]

The under-seat speakers are not obvious, they are recessed in the floor and point upwards, very flat. I hesitate to call them subs, they're kind of thumpy-sounding but I don't find they add much, personally. They are the primary output for sport-mode ASD piped-in sound, which I hate and which I coded out.

[adc]

Originally Posted by GoinDahnTahn

no, i didnt even see an option to add the Harmon-Kardon system....does your 2022 have it?

mine def does not have the HK system.

This site is very helpful, i had no idea....thanks!

Yes mine definitely has it. But it is a 2022 model made halfway through 2021, so the supply may have been different then.

I will upgrade the underseat mid-woofers, with either BavSound or Alpha (similar cost), to get a boost in efficiency at the low end. And most likely stop there, although I find the highs a bit fatiguing on the HK and may do something about that later.

I can see how not having the HK would make you think about a whole system. Let us know what you decide to go with...

[rice_rocket88]

I settled on a dealer stocked car and didn't get the HK... which is a bummer because it is much better than the Hifi system. The Hifi does not have tweeters nor a center dash speaker! I put in tweeters to each door myself and a center speaker from my e60. I heard that changing the Amp would help a lot vs putting in better speakers. I've kind of just gotten lazy and the addition of the extra speakers was good enough for now.

[GoinDahnTahn]

man, i feel ripped off a little bit now, lol....figures....im betting mine with the missing HK didnt lower the MSRP, right.....is there anything else that is left out of later 2022 builds? (after doing some searching, im apparently fortunate my seats have lumbar support)

stumbled upon this bimmer-tech site that has audio upgrade options, anyone have experience with them?....is it better/worse/same vs BAVSOUND?....seemed like BAVSOUND didnt offer amp when i entered my model...

the bimmer-tech includes tweeters which would require modification to the door, so id prob remove that from the purchase....

also looked at Crutchfield, which has some upgrade options too....

see screen shot below of these three....the Crutchfield doesnt show all the components in the cart, its 4 door speakers, 2 subs, 1 front center speaker, 1 amp (all are "MATCH" brand)

[GoinDahnTahn]

Originally Posted by //TMT

The under-seat speakers are not obvious, they are recessed in the floor and point upwards, very flat. I hesitate to call them subs, they're kind of thumpy-sounding but I don't find they add much, personally. They are the primary output for sport-mode ASD piped-in sound, which I hate and which I coded out.

i looked under the seats again, took a picture....is the flat plastic area where the sub is?

.