[Apples12]

Hi all

I'm currently in a G30 530e M Sport Edition which is very well specced having tech plus, comfort plus, M Sport Edition (M bucket seats, special wheels, black pack), visibility pack and is a fantastic car for me since my commute dropped from 70-80 miles one way to 3 each way. (Previously had an F10 520d which I put 220k miles on over the course of 5years)

As family is growing and the boot on the 530e is pathetic, I am looking at an estate/touring and the i5 touring fits the bill as we have solar at work with free charging and also at home.

I toyed with the idea of brand new lease but hard to justify looking at the depreciation of these and as such looking at an approved used/less than 6 months old instead.

My questions are

1. What is the difference between driving assistant and driving assistant pro?

(I currently have DAP and would not have a car without it now)

2. Is there a visual way to tell from car images if a car has the tech plus pack or not?

(In the G30/31 you could tell by the presence of the radar sensor and the wide triple camera in the windscreen)

3. What is the smallest wheel size that can be fitted to the g61?

I much prefer a comfortable ride than a visually appealing one so if I can knock down to 18's I happily will!)

Many thanks

[patch5674]

Originally Posted by Apples12

Hi all

I'm currently in a G30 530e M Sport Edition which is very well specced having tech plus, comfort plus, M Sport Edition (M bucket seats, special wheels, black pack), visibility pack and is a fantastic car for me since my commute dropped from 70-80 miles one way to 3 each way. (Previously had an F10 520d which I put 220k miles on over the course of 5years)

As family is growing and the boot on the 530e is pathetic, I am looking at an estate/touring and the i5 touring fits the bill as we have solar at work with free charging and also at home.

I toyed with the idea of brand new lease but hard to justify looking at the depreciation of these and as such looking at an approved used/less than 6 months old instead.

My questions are

1. What is the difference between driving assistant and driving assistant pro?

(I currently have DAP and would not have a car without it now)

2. Is there a visual way to tell from car images if a car has the tech plus pack or not?

(In the G30/31 you could tell by the presence of the radar sensor and the wide triple camera in the windscreen)

3. What is the smallest wheel size that can be fitted to the g61?

I much prefer a comfortable ride than a visually appealing one so if I can knock down to 18's I happily will!)

Many thanks

I am guessing you are in the UK with your packs. I have got a touring arriving next month and have been through some of these dilemmas.

So Driving Assistant ONLY is really useless (unacceptable on a 85K car - it is basic cruise control and basic lane depature warning etc), however the car comes with Driving Assistant PLUS Preparation and can be ordered from the app store after the car has arrived.

Plus includes Active cruise control with stop and go and lane keep assist. Effectively the car can drive itself but you must keep your hands on the wheel.

Driving Assistant Pro which is what comes as part of the tech+ pack has the capability to do Highway Assist. This is hands off the wheel, eyes on the road (Level 2+?) HOWEVER, it is not enabled in the UK as hands off the wheel driving isn't legal is my understanding. It can do some things like perform a lane change on a motorway if you look at a mirror.

But the car has the ability to do it should regulations change.

You can tell if a car has Driving Assistant Pro by the steering wheel - above the SET and + - buttons is two LED strips that can illuminate. Pro is not a retrofit and is not available on app store.

In the UK you won't immediately notice a huge amount of different between PLUS and PRO and any car can have PLUS added to it, but when ordering new it is actually cheaper to order tech + and get PRO rather than add plus from connected drive.

My understanding is that the smallest wheel is 19, it is what the Sport trim comes with (I have 20's coming on mine but I actually love the 19inch silver rim that comes on Sport and isn't available on MSport, I am considering ordering them)

Finally in terms of costs - I have ordered via Sal Sac lease - not sure if you have one of these schemes available in your work, but if not I suspect you will find it cheaper ordering brand new.

BMW are offering 4.9% on new i5's alongside discounts whereas their approved used APR on the Demonstrator models is locked at something silly north of 12%.


ETA: The UK have approved a Ford Level 2 system called Blue Cruise in the UK but it is limited to certain motorways, Driving Assistant Pro is probably equivalent to this when it is allowed to use "Highway Assist" (it's name in the US).

[Apples12]

I'm 99% the pro version I have in my g30 is superior to the plus described above

İt will hold the lane and undertake gentle lane manoeuvring like moving into bends etc as long as there is a hand on the wheel and eyes are forward

İf you let go of the wheel I think it's roughly 20 seconds it will hold the lane etc until it flashes yellow for a period then red at which point the seat belt pulls you into the seat and the car starts to slow until it detects some sort of driver intervention

I absolutely love the DAP in mine. İt makes motorway driving and inner city traffic driving a breeze!

I may have a look at the new options but the pricing was ridiculous for a lease even on salary sacrifice once I'd added in tech+ and comf+ -

An m sport drive 40 with tech+ cmf+ metallic paint was coming in close to 1100pm for a 15kpa lease. 83k otr

Car on approved used with 300 miles, m sport pro, tech+ cmf+ metallic paint, sun protection, pan roof, crystal controls, leather interior - 74k at the moment

I can only foresee prices dropping further over the next 6 months for nearly new ones.

Porsche taycan numbers have been shocking!

[RichardInCA]

Great reply from patch5674 - I’ll note that assist plus also has the illuminated strips on the steering wheel (it lights up to remind you to put your hands back on the wheel).

I’d consider a test drive to help address your wheel size question, and also which model you get will make a big difference to comfort. I have an i5 with 20” wheels and the ride is incredibly smooth/compliant in Personal mode. I wouldn’t have believed it before I drove the car to be honest.

[patch5674]

Originally Posted by Apples12

I'm 99% the pro version I have in my g30 is superior to the plus described above

İt will hold the lane and undertake gentle lane manoeuvring like moving into bends etc as long as there is a hand on the wheel and eyes are forward

İf you let go of the wheel I think it's roughly 20 seconds it will hold the lane etc until it flashes yellow for a period then red at which point the seat belt pulls you into the seat and the car starts to slow until it detects some sort of driver intervention

I absolutely love the DAP in mine. İt makes motorway driving and inner city traffic driving a breeze!

I may have a look at the new options but the pricing was ridiculous for a lease even on salary sacrifice once I'd added in tech+ and comf+ -

An m sport drive 40 with tech+ cmf+ metallic paint was coming in close to 1100pm for a 15kpa lease. 83k otr

Car on approved used with 300 miles, m sport pro, tech+ cmf+ metallic paint, sun protection, pan roof, crystal controls, leather interior - 74k at the moment

I can only foresee prices dropping further over the next 6 months for nearly new ones.

Porsche taycan numbers have been shocking!

Apologies what I meant for the Plus version on the i5 is pretty much what you have described when I said as long as you keep your hands on the wheel the car will effectively drive itself - you can remove them for short bursts, but you aren't meant to. But yes the car will keep itself in lane and follow road markings, bring itself to a complete stop and proceed again.

Driving Assistant Pro Pack in the G60 generation of cars contains "Highway Assist" which in the US and Germany (and potentially UK but not yet) you can and are allowed to take your hands off the wheel and sit there for an extended period as long as you keep your eyes on the road.

Is that £1100 Gross or Net? If Net then yes that is incredibly high from your provider (one thing I have learnt is that everyone in different firms and providers see wildly different pricing)

Originally Posted by RichardInCA

Great reply from patch5674 - I’ll note that assist plus also has the illuminated strips on the steering wheel (it lights up to remind you to put your hands back on the wheel).

It is the Pro version that has the light strips Plus can be added to any i5 from Connected Drive. But Pro can not as amongst other hardware changes it has a slightly different steering wheel with these lights.

[Tommie75]

Originally Posted by patch5674

It is the Pro version that has the light strips Plus can be added to any i5 from Connected Drive. But Pro can not as amongst other hardware changes it has a slightly different steering wheel with these lights.

I have PLUS and have the light strips.

[RichardInCA]

Originally Posted by Tommie75

I have PLUS and have the light strips.

Same for me, hence my comment - light strips don’t necessarily equate to having the full pack for pro

[patch5674]

Did you order Plus from the factory?

That isn't an option here in the UK - the cars only come with Driving Assistant.

DA Plus (5AT) can only be ordered from the connected drive store.

Although happy to be wrong here I believed in the UK light strips = Pro, because otherwise all cars would have them which isn't the case.

[Tommie75]

From the factory. The lights do have a function for plus.