Had an extensive overnight test drive of a 545i auto with sports package. The car does not come with navigation, voice recognition, or heads up display.

Good stuff

Car truly handles very well with active steering. Very little effort is required to make aggressive moves. Very little roll. Progressive brakes. Nice and thick steering wheel. Powerful engine, only slightly slower than W210 E55. Car is relatively quiet.

Cool onscreen parking aid. Fully adjustable, large and deep front seats with upper seatback tilts. Comfortable headrests with neck support. Front seats side bolsters would deflate and steering wheel would move out of your way when you remove key. Seat heaters take literally 5 seconds to come to full power. Rear heated seats available.

Slightly roomier in the back than the W211.

Bad stuff

Unacceptable ergonomics requiring some explanation.

iDrive submenu system complicates simple tasks. Far too much distraction. iDrive knob unfriendly to hold and use. Interface is non-intuitive, sometimes you have to turn the knob, sometimes push it up and down and sideways.

The fact that BMW has to put a cheat sheet next to the iDrive knob explains how poor a system it is:

http://www.pistonheads.com/doc.asp?c=100&i=8214

Problem is that the iDrive knob does not give audio or tactile feedback when you scroll through the many layers of submenu. User always have to look at the screen for the visual confirmation.

The newly added menu button helps but in the wrong location. A joystick or arrow keys with extra buttons will be an acceptable input method (read Audi MMI) but not the iDrive knob. With the knob, one must maneuver it with care as you can twist it left and right, push it, or slide it up, down, left or right. Far too easy to make mistakes especially in a moving vehicle. I much prefer COMAND.

At least with COMAND, I always know where the buttons are and I don't have to click ok every time I start the car to release the manufacturer from the liability.

Telematics is a complete failure. Dialing is extremely difficult and frustrating without a touch screen or keypad. Twisting and turning the knob reminded me of opening a rotary combination safe. A 2 seconds task turned into a 20 seconds or longer nightmare. BMW should at least put a separate numeric keypad like in the 7 series. In its current form, the car phone is not usable.

Come to think of it, I think BMW deserves to be sued for iDrive. The inherit failure of iDrive is that there is no learning curve. One simply cannot get used to entering phone numbers with a rotary knob.

Not enough knee room for a 6 foot 1 driver. If you like the front part of the cushion adjusted high up for extra thigh support, your right knee will rub against the steering column.

While the active steering is nice, I did not get used to it within the 6 hours test drive. However, unlike iDrive I do believe there is a learning curve with active steering.

Turn signal stalk also takes some getting used to, not enough tactile difference between the auto and manual signal. No optional auto trunk closer like in the W211. Hard to adjust seat controls. You have a combination of 7 tiny buttons moving 14 ways and you have to learn to use them by touch by sliding your hand in the narrow space between the door and the seat bottom. Quite a shame considering the widely adjustable very comfortable seats.

Dash looks cheap and nasty. Instead of useful buttons, you get endless cheap plastic trim pieces at the center console. At night, the iDrive screen clashes with the typical BMW amber/orange dash. Cup holders look and feel cheap, so does the center storage compartment.

Conclusion, a car that drives very well (better than any W211) but everything else about it is a complete disaster. I have left the car's appearance criticism alone as I'm sure it's obvious enough for readers.

 

I sold my 2003 E55 a few weeks ago and replaced it this weekend with a 545. I completely agree with your review, although since I have the comfort seats and the premium stereo I will add a few more positive remarks- these are the most comfortable seats in existence and the stereo is among the very best.

I also don't feel as put off by the I-drive and other ergonomic flaws, but perhaps these things improve with time.

 

Yes, the seats are truly comfortable, nice and large seat cushions.

Too bad the car doesn't come with navigation or heads up display, would love to test out both features.

I also find the black wood trim better looking than I thought.

It's always a tradeoff and I think one does get used to many things in time. However, do consider it a blessing you don't have to deal with the keypadless car phone!

 

Umm i think this thread should be moved to W211 E class not AMG section!

 

Agree BoBcanada, it probably belongs to off topic, I put it here only because as a current W211 E55 owner, I'm also interested in the E60 M5 and thus the detailed test drive reported here.

My conclusion? Still have the deposit with BMW but will more than likely take it back.

 

W210, your reviews are better than most I've read from professionals. As my wife and I often joke...that's just sad, Amos. And being 6 foot 2 the lack of comfort is particularly disheartening to hear. The more details I hear about BMW's, the more I'm left scratching my head. And by the way, once you get used to the Command system it sounds like it's far better than theirs.

 

Thank you Ed. As a potential end user, I have the vested interest to want to explore and understand the BMW completely.

I'm surprised no professional writers complained about the unusable car phone. I honestly think it is the biggest farce with BMW reinventing how we should dial phone numbers. The world will be a horrible place if BMW takes over Nokia and Motorola.

Oh there is absolutely no doubt the current version of COMAND is far easier to use than iDrive. The latter's interface is full of inconsistencies and is in my opinion fundamentally flawed partly due to the poorly conceived input device, the unfriendly knob.

The knob requires too much concentration from the user as it is far too easy to turn an extra click or to accidentally bump it left right and center. Unlike the BMW steptronic gear lever which I had much fun up/down shifting, the iDrive knob is truly frustrating to hold and use.

What a shame. I hope MB will do more homework as they redesign the next generation COMAND.

 

I own a 545 and I have owned 3 E55's.

I truly don't understand all the fuss about Command or I-drive. Sure they are both complicated and involving. That is their point. They are gizmos for guys who like gizmos.

I am actually disappointed that I-drive is so easy to use, after all the fuss I have read in magazines. It is quite easy to find menu items and manipulate them. When I took delivery of the car, the salespeople were mostly intimidated by I-drive and would call over their uber tech to handle minor questions. The tech would spend maybe 2 seconds twiddling the knob and quickly and easily solve the problem and walk away in disgust at the stupidity of the sales people.

I feel the same way- anyone who cannot figure out I-drive or Command really shouldn't be allowed to have a driver's license and be on our roads.

 

I agree with this 100%. I-drive is not difficult to figure out. however, i still much prefer use of buttons.

 

Well, there's another point of view. My question would be, which system is easier to manipulate as you're driving the car, potentially at high speeds and in traffic? With Command you don't have to take your eyes off the road very much, and the buttons are decent sized. Myself even less since I have voice control. Complicated and involving? Nah, I might want a fancy home stereo to play with. When I'm driving a car I want ease.

 

With COMAND I can dial a phone number with the keypad in 2-5 seconds. With iDrive it takes 10 times as long as every digit requires some serious twisting and turning of the stupid knob.

 

the furthest thing from my mind when it comes to driving is whether or not i can use my car to dial a damn phone number. if i were in an E55 or M5 i wouldnt give a damn whether i can use an $80,000 driving machine to dial a friggin phone number. thats what i use my $75 cell phone for those cars are meant for driving.

and as for I-drive, its a piece of cake. the auto show rescently was in town and i sat in the 545 for a short bit and within minutes was able to take to it like a fish in water. i truly dont understand the big fuss. with all the technologies and features companies are adding to cars these days youd be an idiot to think they could use, or you would want to use, a different button for every function. more and more you will see the need for some sort of centralized control unit, which will control more and more functions.

cars and thier respective technology are advancing, time to catch up.

 

Hey wannabe, ever heard of where there is smoke there is fire?

Why is the i-drive debated and berated so often? Same with the interior and exterior design? To me if there is that much controversy about it, then there must be a problem.

I drive sucks. Plus I don't like the way the screen has a tacked on look to it, didn' they design the interior with the screen in mind? looks disjointed and I hate the asymetrical design of the center console.

 

Norb, I totally agree.

It took me less than 5 minutes to completely figure out iDrive in the 545i, but that doesn't mean it's a system I'm willing to live with.

WannaBeAMG, I understand your concern, for those who only read about the M5 or E55, it may sound silly to worry about trivial things like the car phone. However, for many of those who own these cars and plan to use them on a daily basis, it's a completely different story.

No for the kind of money I spend, I refuse to live with an inferior solution such as a stupid bluetooth wireless or wired ear piece. When the phone rings, I want to see the caller's name on the dash without fishing out the damn phone. Been there, done that.

There is a reason why many folks prefer to get ripped off by MB on their expensive in car telematics, despite the obsolete V60s they provide. It is the convenience. No panic fishing when you receive that call every few minutes, no need to ever worry about the phone out of battery, nothing dangling on your face, no seatbelt tangled with the headphone cord, no extra bluetooth device to charge, no need to worry about missing calls if my music is too loud, etc.

When I'm enjoying my 500+ horses, I want to have good telematics so I can pay more attention to the driving. The E55 or M5 is not my dream machine which I only take out on the weekends, it's my daily work horse and it must serve its basic function.

If BMW thinks it's important group the in-car communication as one of the four main categories, they should get it right and stop insulting drivers to dial with the pathetic iDrive.

 

1st of all, BMW does provide an ancient V60i option that does the same thing as the mercedes V60 solution. therefore the comment you made about inferior bluetooth wireless solution makes no sense what so ever. Because BMW offers both as solution.

2nd- You are also wrong about bluetooth. BMW bluetooth module is powered by the car itself. There is no need to charge it other than charging your phone. With bluetooth, it automatically tune down the audio as well.

you can bash the i-drive as much as you can. But please get the information straight.

 

Krispykrme, let me explain to you why you're wrong.

MB V60i vs. BMW V60i:

There is a huge difference between the BMW 545i V60i and the MB V60i, the latter offers a keypad for phone number entries, unlike the 7 series, the 5 series do NOT have a keypad for phone dialing.

Have you tested the V60 in the 545i? I have, it forces you to enter each digit with the knob, without a keypad, it sucks.

Secondly, regarding charging bluetooth devices, please don't put words in my mouth, I was answering WannaBeAMG's post regarding the $75 cell phones, referring to other third party bluetooth solutions.

From past experience, I hate having to charge a phone more frequently due to the battery drain from bluetooth, and as you can imagine, having another bluetooth ear piece to charge is also a pain. Yes, you are correct in BMW's bluetooth case, the ear piece will obviously not be required. Please keep in mind the BMW bluetooth on the 545i is still unavailable, well, at least here in Canada where I am.

I welcome BMW's bluetooth solution. However, I speculate it will also have the same weakness as the V60i, as BMW is arrogant enough to eliminate a keypad.

 

yes, I am fully aware the lack of key pad. Hence dialing a number that is not stored on the phone is pain the behind.

however, I disagree with you that MB's setup is any better. For one thing, even though there is a key pad, it is located toward the passenger side and downward.

With I-Drive at least your eye does not have to look down as far as the MB key pad. I do not think I-drive is that hard to use if you used it for a while. In fact, turning one single knob with screen right next to the instrument panel require less time with eye off the road.

What mercedes did better than BMW on the phone is that you can press one button and access the phone dial. This is not the case with I-drive. But to me, the dialing keypad is not really needed and in fact i think I-drive is a lot easier once you reach the dialing screen.

Bluetooth is a much better solution for me. As i do not like V60i and it opens up more phone for the car.

I had bluetooth in my M3. And It was quiet easy to use. I have no problem using the knob to select numbers to dial.

 

I'm with W210 on this phone matter. I personally like the feel of a keypad rather then a "twisty-dialy" thing that the iDrive is.

 

Isn't it amazing that on a $33,000 Acura TL, handsfree bluetooth telephony is standard, takes a couple of minutes to set up, and is voice activated. Why is it that MB and BMW can offer adjustable radar activated cruise control and keyless go, but can't get Bluetooth technology right?

 

Two things that I've picked up on from the discussion are that most people tend to be instantly put off and confused by an electronics system, while also being able to easily master it if required to. However, people also know user friendly when they see it. I agree with Dr. Chill. Both Mercedes and BMW could have done a better job designing these systems.

 

Thank you.

Trust me, it is almost impossible to dial a phone number with iDrive's knob. I have tried it during my 6 hours test drive it doesn't work.

Besides the pain from twisting, turning and pushing the knob for each digit, BMW's telematics will not let you conveniently dial, 1-800-BMW-HELP.

Why? Because without an alpha numeric keypad to look at, you will not know 1-800-BMW-HELP is 1-800-269-4357.

And one will not be able to key in a name when accessing office automated telephone systems. Ok, so I forgot a coworker's extension and try to spell it out, by keying in "Tom" - with iDrive's pathetic knob and screen, there is no way I would know to type in 866.

I strongly believe those who argue the phone system in the 545i is as good as the MB W211 E-class system had not done enough homework, yes, it's you, Krispykreme.

First you argued the BMW and MB V60 systems have the same V60 system, yet when I corrected you that only the MB has the very important keypad, you then claim the iDrive knob is still better for dialing than the keypad.

Now this is a part I STRONGLY disagree.

I can dial with a keypad by touch with my eyes closed, can anyone do the same with iDrive?

I challenge anyone, with a randomly selected number, you dial with the stupid iDrive knob and I dial with the MB keypad, I can bet ANYTHING that even if I allow you to practice for MONTHS with the twisting and turning, you will still be MUCH slower.

Have you honestly tried the telematics in the 545i? Do you know how pathetic the numbers are arranged?

It's not the industry phone standard:

123
456
789
*0#

Nor even the ASCII keyboard style:

789
456
123
0

it's

0123456789!!!

With the BMW invented 0123456789 layout, even when you try to enter a very easy to dial number like 1-800-555-1212, after entering 1, you will have to turn the knob 7 times to reach 8, then 8 clicks backwards to get to 0, and then 5 clicks forward to get back to 5. 4 clicks counter clockwise back to 1, etc.

And you are claiming this is better than a keypad? It's a complete nightmare!!! Yes, iDrive is easy to figure out, but extremely inconvenient to use.

I would rather have a keypad in the sun visor or in the glove box than not having one. Bluetooth may be an acceptable solution, provided a keypad is in place.

 

After driving a BMW 545 for a week now, here are some further observations:

1. Ride is too stiff. Must be the run flat tires. The E55 was more compliant.
2. I keep reaching to adjust the ride, but there isn't an adjustment button.
3. Very little roll in the corners- OK this must be the benefit of the stiffness. I wish MB would add active body to the E55.
4. Folks, I like I-drive. It is easier to use than Command and more powerful.
5. Those comfort seats. MB needs to study these- they are wonderful.
6. However, the steering wheel has a mind of its own when it comes to adjustments. If I move it closer than BMW thinks I should, then it raises itself. I hate a car that thinks it is smarter than me.

 

Thx for everyone's input...definitely much better than the auto magazines. probably my biggest surprise is how many problems these cars have for the $60k+ asking price. i know that many people have high standards and expect much for the money, but when the complaints are so minor that a $25k Toyota or VW can address them properly(such as interior quality or seat), then i wonder what BMW or MB mgmt's thinking...for now, it seems like the car drives well, but the rest of it unacceptable...regardless of the price paid for the car, esp. vs. current BMWs and/or alternatives.

 

You are acutally wrong on so many things.

1st of all with voice command module, you already could dial by name if your phone supported (provided that you have pre-program voice command for your phone).

2. I find no problem with 0123456789 lay out. Because it's one know scrolling in either left or right direction. This has been layout for BMW bluetooth module since it was introduced.

Don't tell me whether i did my homework or not. At least I have been using BMW bluetooth system using a even worse design for more than 6 months.

The only thing that W211 does better is how quickly you can access the dial screen instead of E60 menus.

As far as dialing goes, I would still much prefer one knob with 0123456789.

I can careless about dial 1800-BMW-help. I never remember which key is associated with ABC, blah blah. If the number is urgent i will simply pre-program to my phone and either use voice command or use bluetooth interface to dail by name.

I much prefer to see the number right next to the instrument panel instead of moving my eye down toward right to figure out the damn keys and look up address book.

This can be done with less distraction in the I-drive. although take longer to get used, much safer than command.

I found someone that has only been using a system for 6 hours is so used to i-drive is more than amusing.

If the W211's key pad is on the driver side, or sits higher than it would be a better design. BUT IT IS NOT!

 

Krispykreme, you completely missed my point and do not understand the biggest handicap of telematics in the 545i I try to point out.

Have you ever called someone's office faced with an automated answering system?

You'll be greeted by the following:

"If you know the party's extension, please enter it now. To spell the person name, press the # sign. Using the touch tone keypad, spell the person's last name you're trying to reach. For staff directory, press the * key."

With an alpha numeric keypad (do you know what it is, look at any telephone keypad), you can see physically on the keys, 6=MNO, 8=TUV.

With iDrive telematics in the new 5, you will be stuck at this point and cannot proceed further.