The facelifted X6 and X5 have had fairly the inside makeover – not completely for the higher, we should say – and most of these modifications have come to the M variations as effectively.
Nearly the entire dashboard was binned and changed in an effort to accommodate BMW’s Curved Display, which is a mix of a 12.3in digital gauge cluster and a 14.9in multimedia display. Between them, they’ve usurped many of the pre-facelift X5’s sprint buttons.
Gone are the bodily local weather controls and numbered shortcut buttons. Thankfully, the centre console retains a good choice, in addition to the rotary cursor controller. The local weather controls are completely on the display, however you should open a menu to get to the heated seats and steering wheel.
We are additionally no huge followers of BMW’s digital gauge cluster, which has loads of whizzy graphics however lacks readability and straightforward configurability. While most digital gauge clusters allow you to show, for instance, the navigation and journey laptop at the identical time, BMW’s doesn’t and makes it arduous to scroll between completely different choices.
BMW hasn’t simply plonked an unlimited display on high of the previous sprint, although. It has additionally redesigned the air vents and the trim. Where the previous automotive had an ornamental trim strip working in entrance of the passenger, there may be now additionally a clear plastic bar with some light-up M graphics. It appears contemporary and trendy, however to the eyes of some testers, a little bit low cost and cheesy too.
That was about the one factor that felt low cost inside our £147,605 check automotive, the place there may be a lot of actual, gentle leather-based and actual, chilly steel. Most of the cabin appointments are shared with the usual X6 and X5, with a couple of exceptions. The X6’s door playing cards are a contact extra ornate than the X5’s and improve the sporty vibe. While facelifted non-M fashions swap their drive selector lever for a a lot much less tactile toggle, the X6 M retains a stubby lever that may be pushed forwards and backwards for the guide mode.
M fashions even have a pair of ‘M Multifunction seats’ with an built-in headrest and extra aggressive bolstering than the usual variations.
The house on provide is pretty typical of an SUV of this sort. Rear leg room is ample, whereas rear head room and rearward visibility are barely affected by the sloping roofline. However, you’re unlikely to be deterred when you like this automotive’s specific fashion, as even adults can journey within the rear in consolation.
Infotainment
BMW’s iDrive was the benchmark for multimedia methods, with logical menus, clear graphics and a plethora of shortcut buttons. In the most recent era, iDrive 8, the local weather controls have moved onto the display, and the menus have turn out to be rather more sophisticated because of a big quantity of apps clogging up the principle display.
Things do get higher with familiarity, it’s attainable to outline some shortcuts and, fortunately, the rotary controller with a choice of buttons stays current and proper. Still, it’s a step again in contrast with the pre-facelift X6.
As earlier than, the built-in navigation is great and reacts to visitors very effectively, and the Bowers & Wilkins hi-fi is highly effective and clear. Mind you, it must be, given how a lot highway noise it’s tasked with overpowering. Wireless telephone mirroring is built-in effectively, and we discovered the BMW smartphone app helpful for checking the automotive’s standing and sending locations to the navigation.