[faffoocasey]

Anyone got an m40i without the adaptive suspension option? Starting to worry about the handling on the passive suspension and hoping someone can give me some thoughts on the car without the upgrade

My dealer at the time of ordering convinced me not to bother with adaptive. Not sure if I regret it or not.

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by faffoocasey

My dealer at the time of ordering convinced me not to bother with adaptive. Not sure if I regret it or not.

Most dealers say this. The truth is that you can't miss what you have never had or tried. The majority of BMWs are excellent cars with passive but depending on your local roads and expectations of body control, adaptive dampers can have big advantages.

Roads I have experienced in and around Glasgow are smooth and flat compared to those in Kent. Here, adaptive dampers signifigantly reduce body roll, diving, squating and leaning through elevation changes and roundabouts. The secondary benefit is a more settled car over road imperfections.

At an additional cost of just £530 on a £51k car, it's a no brainer option. If you still have an option to add it, then do so. However some people who prioritise road feel and "rawness" prefer passive suspension.

[Rbrown]

Originally Posted by Crassus

Most dealers say this. The truth is that you can't miss what you have never had or tried. The majority of BMWs are excellent cars with passive but depending on your local roads and expectations of body control, adaptive dampers can have big advantages.

Roads I have experienced in and around Glasgow are smooth and flat compared to those in Kent. Here, adaptive dampers signifigantly reduce body roll, diving, squating and leaning through elevation changes and roundabouts. The secondary benefit is a more settled car over road imperfections.

At an additional cost of just £530 on a £51k car, it's a no brainer option. If you still have an option to add it, then do so. However some people who prioritise road feel and "rawness" prefer passive suspension.

+1 - if you have the chance, try and add it into your build.

The roads round here are getting worse!

[RocketRomeo]

Agreed... definitely an easy choice for the price... and we all know how bad the UK roads are..

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by RocketRomeo

Agreed... definitely an easy choice for the price... and we all know how bad the UK roads are..

Well I'll reword my post slightly. I'm beyond the point of being able to change my spec. Just wondering if anyone else didn't go for it and how the car drives / handles.

[rrao56]

Well, I don’t have it on my present 440i GC, from 2017, and it rides perfectly well. Though every reviewer said one should have it.
So have ordered it on my X3, shall know later this week if it does make a significant difference.

[munna]

I think it makes a huge difference and am totally glad I threw it into my purchase last minute.

I frequently drive on a stretch of highway that has a fairly sharp bend. In comfort mode, the X3 feels very soft as if riding on a marshmellow. Can totally feel it lean into the corner. I tried it in sport damper last night, and was amazed at how tight and flat it was through the corner. Almost as composed as my previous 3 series

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by faffoocasey

Well I'll reword my post slightly. I'm beyond the point of being able to change my spec. Just wondering if anyone else didn't go for it and how the car drives / handles.

What did the M40i you test drive have? Understandably you might not have driven one if you ordered shortly after the books opened.

[Rbrown]

Worse case, you could like at changing the suspension springs to something like ACSchnitzer when they come out. Put them on my 330d, made a huge difference.

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by Crassus

What did the M40i you test drive have? Understandably you might not have driven one if you ordered shortly after the books opened.

I test drove an X3 20d, so nothing like the M40i I reckon. It didn't have adaptive. I did think the body roll was quite bad on the 20d, so I'm hoping the passive m40i is stiffer than that at least.

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by Rbrown

Worse case, you could like at changing the suspension springs to something like ACSchnitzer when they come out. Put them on my 330d, made a huge difference.

Is that basically stiffer springs?

[Aaaaaaaaa]

I test drove one with and without adaptive suspension back to back yesterday. The one with was noticeably smoother and more controlled over bumps than the one without. Both felt worlds better in terms of ride comfort compared to my F80 tho

[Rbrown]

Originally Posted by faffoocasey

Is that basically stiffer springs?

Yes. But they did improve the ride quality. Let “crashy”.

Why don’t you see how the car feels, can always show you mine (with adaptive), it may not be too different. What size of wheels are you getting? You could always try run flats as well.

Try not to worry. It will still be a great car. Where is it coming from? Will be good to see another one on the roads round here!

[M40iGuy]

I feel a clear difference with adaptive dampers on.

I can feel the difference between comfort, sport and sport + clearly. The chassis tightens up and feels more connected with the road.

Still less than a week in, but it feels like Eco-Pro is less plush than comfort, and adaptive drive mode gives me the best ride feeling around town.

[MarkyM]

Was the 20D you drove a M Sport or Xline/SE model? The standard M40i suspension is listed as M Sport suspension so I assume the same set up as M Sport models? The adaptive option though between the M Sport and M40i are different but not sure how

I test drove a 30D M Sport on 19" tyres last December without adaptive and thought it was excellent, it was a much better ride than my 2012 X5 M Sport on same size rims, although I did order the adaptive because of the relatively low price

If you stick with it don't imagine the Adaptive is a magic carpet ride as it isn't but would be worth testing one if only for piece of mind

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by MarkyM

Was the 20D you drove a M Sport or Xline/SE model? The standard M40i suspension is listed as M Sport suspension so I assume the same set up as M Sport models? The adaptive option though between the M Sport and M40i are different but not sure how

I test drove a 30D M Sport on 19" tyres last December without adaptive and thought it was excellent, it was a much better ride than my 2012 X5 M Sport on same size rims, although I did order the adaptive because of the relatively low price

If you stick with it don't imagine the Adaptive is a magic carpet ride as it isn't but would be worth testing one if only for piece of mind

Originally Posted by Rbrown

Yes. But they did improve the ride quality. Let "crashy".

Why don't you see how the car feels, can always show you mine (with adaptive), it may not be too different. What size of wheels are you getting? You could always try run flats as well.

Try not to worry. It will still be a great car. Where is it coming from? Will be good to see another one on the roads round here!

It's coming from the states at the moment. Estimated to arrive end of June after a delay.

Hoping to god it's as good to drive as I'm hoping, it's the most expensive car I've ever bought haha.

Originally Posted by MarkyM

Was the 20D you drove a M Sport or Xline/SE model? The standard M40i suspension is listed as M Sport suspension so I assume the same set up as M Sport models? The adaptive option though between the M Sport and M40i are different but not sure how

I test drove a 30D M Sport on 19" tyres last December without adaptive and thought it was excellent, it was a much better ride than my 2012 X5 M Sport on same size rims, although I did order the adaptive because of the relatively low price

If you stick with it don't imagine the Adaptive is a magic carpet ride as it isn't but would be worth testing one if only for piece of mind

I believe it was an M sport, but I had been told the m40i is stiffer susspension than the M sport. I don't think I'll be cancelling the order just for this. But guess I'm just panicking after so many people saying it's a must have option

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by MarkyM

Was the 20D you drove a M Sport or Xline/SE model? The standard M40i suspension is listed as M Sport suspension so I assume the same set up as M Sport models?

From what I've gauged, the M40i is firmer than M-sport models.

However, I've only driven a G01 20D M-Sport. Perhaps someone who have driven both can comment?

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by Crassus

From what I've gauged, the M40i is firmer than M-sport models.

However, I've only driven a G01 20D M-Sport. Perhaps someone who have driven both can comment?

This was my understanding also, would be good to know if anyone on here experienced both

[jjl]

My M40i has adaptive M, and for $500 it's a no brainer (same cost as wireless charging...really?). That said, I rarely put the car into the 'Adaptive' mode, and I'm not sure the adaptive dampers are being used in the non-adaptive modes. It does feel like the dampers stiffen when I put the car in Sport mode, but it's hard to say for sure. Never driven a non-Adaptive M40i so I can't compare, but the comment above by the person who drove them back to back leads me to believe the adaptive dampers work in all modes, including the non adaptive modes.

[nxa]

Originally Posted by jjl

and I'm not sure the adaptive dampers are being used in the non-adaptive modes..

They are. I'm like a broken record but this whole thread is painful reading and underlines yet again how badly BMW position the dynamic dampers.

[MarkyM]

Originally Posted by faffoocasey

It's coming from the states at the moment. Estimated to arrive end of June after a delay.

Hoping to god it's as good to drive as I'm hoping, it's the most expensive car I've ever bought haha.

I believe it was an M sport, but I had been told the m40i is stiffer susspension than the M sport. I don't think I'll be cancelling the order just for this. But guess I'm just panicking after so many people saying it's a must have option

Do you know where they got that information?, I know in some regions M Sport is just a cosmetic pack and still gets the standard suspension but UK models have M Sport suspension as standard with a no cost option to delete, on the price list the suspension is shown the same as on M40i and M Sport although both have different adaptive options, if you have you vin number you may be able to get the suspension code to compare to a M Sport to see if the same

Mind you there is also some performance options added to 30D and M40i that the 20D models don't get which could also make a difference to feel

I would think you will be fine though, if adaptive wasn't an option I am sure everyone would still be saying it is an amazing car

[faffoocasey]

Originally Posted by MarkyM

I would think you will be fine though, if adaptive wasn't an option I am sure everyone would still be saying it is an amazing car

This is kinda my thinking. And I really like firm feeling cars, I prefer to feel the road over a really cushioned ride. So I'm hoping it will be ok.

Put it this way, in my M Sport 2 series at the moment, I always drive in sport mode.