Is X Drive worth the premium price?

[McBeemer]

So - ideal is a 540i which I know are all X drives but having a few wobbles on cost of ownership and outlay to purchase and now looking back at 530d's after 5.5 years in an F10 530d.

I've read a lot of good reports that the X drive 530d is a stunner but price wise they are in the same ball park as the 540's whereas I can get a newer high spec'd RWD 530d for 2 or 3 grand less.

I do 6k miles a year - hence the idea of the petrol.

Is the X drive 'all that'???

Edited December 12, 2022 by McBeemer

[BobA]

I’ve not driven a 530d in both RWD and AWD, my last car was a 520d RWD but I’d say that the xDrive is a better drive. It doesn’t need snow to get the benefit as the amount of grip on wet or even damp roads (maybe even dry ones) is much better. I notice it most getting away quickly at a roundabout especially an uphill one for instance where the 520 used to spin a bit and hang back whereas the 530 with more torque just takes off. Also the car just feels more stable on corners - I feel more confident with it. No one really drives a 5 series trying to hang the tail out so to me the xDrive makes for a better neutral steering car. You need more than a short test drive to feel the benefits. The penalties are a little more cost and 10% or so worse fuel consumption - I don’t see many reports of failures from the extra complexity either. If you’re into lowering cars (I’m not) I think the xDrive restricts you more. To me it’s more worth having than some of the more gimmicky options (but I’m a bit of an old fart when it comes to gizmos that wear off after the first day or 2 of fiddling with them). 😉

[Mr H]

^+1; also, if you are only doing 6k per year a petrol engine is probably a better choice (no issues with DPF regen or EGR problems) AND the B58 engine in the 540i is an absolute peach 🙂

Edited December 19, 2022 by Mr H

[Procion]

Depends on how you intend to use the car (I do 20k+ a yr) How you drive the car (I’m not hesitant) Do you tow? Do you drive in snow or mud? Do you really want to spend the pennies?

Plus side: 

A torquey car (530D/540i) will benefit from easily getting the power down on slippery surfaces.
Cornering ability and general stability are enhanced. (Increased safety)
It will add to resale value.

Minus side:

Increased Weight 
Fuel penalty
Possibly slightly reduced turning circle. (Not 100% on that)
Increased purchased price
More complex therefore more to go wrong.

For my type of vehicle usage, I deem it essential, for you I’d suggest not.

Hope the above helps.
 

[Kopfjaeger]

With 4 wheel drive, I think you'll be looking at heavier wear on the brakes and tyres too, so expect higher maintenance costs.

It comes down to personal choice, unless you feel you need 4WD.

For what its worth, I test drove an Audi A7 2.8 quattro before driving a BMW 5GT, 535i. Both the most exotic I've driven to date. I reckon the A7 was a 9.5/10 on the drive front with 5GT being more of 8/10.

I bought the BMW (obviously) and don't regret it.

 

At the end of the day, if you can afford it, go with your heart...you only live once!

[Sjl]

I understand the 540 xDrive spends most of its life in RWD mode and only switches to 4WD when lower grip detected, so I don’t think fuel consumption, tyre and brake wear will be significantly different, at least I’m not seeing that. 

Think the safety benefits are probably worthwhile, and with your annual mileage I’d be looking at petrol rather than diesel.

My previous car was a 535D and I’m very happy that I changed to a 540i xDrive …..

 

 

[BobA]

47 minutes ago, Sjl said:

I understand the 540 xDrive spends most of its life in RWD mode and only switches to 4WD when lower grip detected

No it doesn't, the AWD is permanent, it spends most of its life under normal road conditions with about 40% to the front wheels and 60% to the rear but varies that anywhere between 100-0 to 0-100 if there's wheelspin on any corner. Fuel consumption up to about 10% worse but (as you say) I don't think tyre and brake wear are much affected overall though you'd expect a better front-rear tyre wear balance I suppose (and actually mine are wearing pretty evenly all round).

As a by-the-way there's been a gearbox control app to fiddle with the AWD on the market for a few years - google for BMW xDelete - but how well it works or if it is available for the G series yet I can't say.

Edited December 29, 2022 by BobA