Quote:
Originally Posted by dcbullets
I was thinking the same thing. To me, the X-Drive ruins the feel of the car. it's so weird and artificial. the 704 RWD is awesome and really fun to drive. It's weird to see people say their 5 series isn't fun to drive. probably should have purchased a RWD.....
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Well there's a few things here.
ezaircon4jc : Sure, they're not to be reviewed back to back as comparables, but I've driven non-704 E39s, E46s, E90s and F30s too. The F-series lack in feedback and involvement, not just outright capability.
dcbullets : X-Drive ruins the car by feeling artificial...? Yeah, but what about it does that? Having torque go to the front wheels? Audi's been doing quattro for a long time and I found the 2000 A6 reasonably entertaining. The new M5 is AWD too. Pre-LCI, anyways, everyone was praising that the X-Drive cars had hydraulic steering instead of the "weird and artificial" electrically boosted steering the RWD cars had. So what's the deal?
I'm looking forward to giving xDelete (by the same folks as xHP) a try when it supports my chassis. It won't erase the weight or the suspension geometry of the X-Drive, but it could change the torque steer situation. On the other hand, I know that unplugging the transfer case is a diagnostic step in certain stages of debugging - I've never heard someone chasing a transfer case problem get this to step and ooh and aah about how the car now feels like it should with X-Drive disconnected. Also, when I'm running into a brisk lefthander trail braking, I'm not really sure the X-Drive is doing anything other than coming along for the ride anyways. It's not just on-throttle that things feel "off".
As for "should have bought an RWD" - they don't sell any where I am and I have what I have. With all the M cars going AWD I think RWD is going to be a dying breed along with 6MT. I wonder if every F90 M5 owner thinks they're "weird and artificial".
FWIW, I read a lot that something changed in the LCI that dramatically improved steering feel. Unfortunately most people reporting that aren't specific about AWD or RWD. Lo and behold, it seems like the big difference is the use of hydro bushings in the front end of the RWD, which the X-Drive already has, so...
Anyways - rant over. I hope the KW's do something good. They are priced pretty dear.