The new X3 with the I6 will be a sweet ride, but at the end of the day, it’s a lifted 3 series. I imagine a GTS+COBB will put it in the rearview most of the time, and a Turbo will outpace it easily. Of course, tuning the M40i will crank it up a notch too - the B58 powerplant is a beast. And since we’re talking BMW, it’s not like the Individual program will be available for it here in the States, so exterior color and interior leather options will be severely limited compared to a Macan. The M Sport steering wheel won’t even be available for the first year of production on this thing - ask me how I know!

Besides, the real cars to watch for will be the X3M and X4M. Now that will be a fun game!

 

when will the M Sport wheel be available on the X3M? And, since you prompted, how do you know? (don't answer that if you will get exposed in any bad way!)

 

Looked at the new X3 at dealer today. Can?t stand the huge grills. And I?ve been a BMW fan for almost 15 years. Interior is a nicer. The dashboard was just okay IMO. It looks largely the same as other BMW?s of yesteryears (barely updated). The wood trim that I saw didn?t quite fit with the rest of the dash. Didn?t bother driving it because I wasn?t considering one; only swung by because we were at a dealer across the street for something else.

 

X3 M40i test drive.

Got to drive the new X3 M40i and have some comments. Engine is a beast and it’s as least as fast as the GTS, may even beat it in a drag. Transmission felt very good , almost felt like a DCT on hard acceleration. No good twisty stuff to drive on in town but handling felt just ok, steering felt very numb. Having to std steering wheel rather than an msport wheel (love the feel of that fat wheel) did not help matters. Big mistake by BMW if they don’t make that available, perhaps it’s just the launch vehicles. GTS has it beat for sure in handling and feel department. Suspension and dampers worked well and took care of the city streets rough spots. More complient that my prior Other series msports cars.

Interior is very nice and seats are comfy and supportive , still not a fan of the display not being built into the dash however. Exterior styling is just ok but may grow on you but some of the exterior plastics feel very flimsy, rear fascia for example. Would bug me every time I washed the car.

 

Got to drive the new X3 M40i and have some comments. Engine is a beast and it’s as least as fast as the GTS, may even beat it in a drag. Transmission felt very good , almost felt like a DCT on hard acceleration. No good twisty stuff to drive on in town but handling felt just ok, steering felt very numb. Having to std steering wheel rather than an msport wheel (love the feel of that fat wheel) did not help matters. Big mistake by BMW if they don’t make that available, perhaps it’s just the launch vehicles. GTS has it beat for sure in handling and feel department. Suspension and dampers worked well and took care of the city streets rough spots. More complient that my prior Other series msports cars.

Interior is very nice and seats are comfy and supportive , still not a fan of the display not being built into the dash however. Exterior styling is just ok but may grow on you but some of the exterior plastics feel very flimsy, rear fascia for example. Would bug me every time I washed the car.

interesting comments, how would you rate the seats quality to your Macan?

 

Got to drive the new X3 M40i and have some comments. Engine is a beast and it’s as least as fast as the GTS, may even beat it in a drag. Transmission felt very good , almost felt like a DCT on hard acceleration. No good twisty stuff to drive on in town but handling felt just ok, steering felt very numb. Having to std steering wheel rather than an msport wheel (love the feel of that fat wheel) did not help matters. Big mistake by BMW if they don’t make that available, perhaps it’s just the launch vehicles. GTS has it beat for sure in handling and feel department. Suspension and dampers worked well and took care of the city streets rough spots. More complient that my prior Other series msports cars.

Interior is very nice and seats are comfy and supportive , still not a fan of the display not being built into the dash however. Exterior styling is just ok but may grow on you but some of the exterior plastics feel very flimsy, rear fascia for example. Would bug me every time I washed the car.

We have the new X4 M40i variant. If you can get past the Airbus rear end, the interior is pretty sharp; dash is better than the X3. Screen is built in. Seats are nice, exhaust is pretty nice for a Bimmer. Nice Purble as the rpms at idle are a bit higher than my Mac. In sport mode it gets a little nasty, in a good way. I think sport mode is a bit more aggressive than in my Mac... when driving at 60% or so. But if I got a bit more aggressive, say 80%.... the Macan starts to shine and it's a matter of it using that telepathy that's always quoted vs just holding gears a bit longer. The Bimmer does bark and burble when letting off the gas or downshifting in sport. It's pretty nice.

But you know what I really notice as a difference? The Macan really is a Jekyll and Hyde. You can drive it sedately and it's fairly relaxed. You can hear the potential. You just somehow know it's lurking there and all it takes is a bit of that right foot and here she comes. Now the Bimmer, you can always hear it. There's always a bit of drone, it might get a little old for a DD CUV. It holds gears in normal driving for a bit too. Suspension is a touch stiffer than my Mac in normal, but PASM may have something to do with that.

Don't get me wrong, my wife really likes it. And for the occasional romp on the gas and exhaust song, it does a good job of that. I think it maybe faster than my S. Even so, I'd pick my S again. Particularly when her sticker was $10k more than mine. I didn't get all the Nav and camera tech. But ssshhhhh..... I got a Porsche >

 

x4 m40i and Macan S, what a garage. From the reviews I understand the new X3M40i suspension is softer and more Jekyll and Hyde and a massive upgrade from previous X4/3 and noise is much sadated in comfort mode, when put in sport it gets nasty.

still waiting for a head to head with the Macan.

 

From car and driver tests when they pitched the Velar vs the rest. (More charts in the review) The M40i looks promising

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2018-range-rover-velar-in-depth-model-review

 

4.7 to 60 for the S. Wow, typical Porsche being conservative with their advertised times. I can't wait for my GTS and hopes I can crack 4.5 . If I had to chose something else right now, it would be the new GLC63 >

From car and driver tests when they pitched the Velar vs the rest. (More charts in the review) The M40i looks promising

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2018-range-rover-velar-in-depth-model-review

 

Just ordered my GoDragy.com Performance Meter to test my 0-60mph, 1/4 mile and 60-130mph
Lets see if its true =D 10hz GPS just like $500+ Vbox

 

Just helped my parents (89 and 85) buy a '18 X3. The autonomous driving tech is very cool. It would be nice for Porsche to consider offering some of this (Audi has similar tech). I do a 1500 mile drive twice a year (snow birds) and it would help with the drive on my '17 GTS.

 

What autonomous driving tech is available on the new X3 that's not currently available on the Macan? Perhaps I missed something, but I thought it was similar.

 

I believe Porsche is a higher tier then BMW, always!

 

From the Pacific BMW website:

The Driving Assistance Package offered in the 2018 X3 includes Active Blind Spot Protection, Lane Departure Warning, Daytime Pedestrian Protection, Frontal Collision Warning with City Collision Mitigation, Cross Traffic Alert rear and Speed Limit Info. With the Driving Assistant Plus Package, you’ll get additional comfort features: Active Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Active Lane Keeping Assistant with Side Collision Avoidance, Traffic Jam Assistant, Evasion Aid and Cross Traffic alert front and rear.”

The Porsche has lane keeping assist which seems far more basic than the BMW system. ACC does not have stop and go (you have to hit resume before it will start from a stop) and PAS does not auto brake. The only other item the Porsche has available is blind spot monitoring but it’s passive and there is no rear cross traffic alert.

The Porsche is a good generation behind on this stuff on the Macan. Obviously for better or worse depending on your point of view.

 

From the Pacific BMW website:

The Driving Assistance Package offered in the 2018 X3 includes Active Blind Spot Protection, Lane Departure Warning, Daytime Pedestrian Protection, Frontal Collision Warning with City Collision Mitigation, Cross Traffic Alert rear and Speed Limit Info. With the Driving Assistant Plus Package, you’ll get additional comfort features: Active Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Active Lane Keeping Assistant with Side Collision Avoidance, Traffic Jam Assistant, Evasion Aid and Cross Traffic alert front and rear.”

Do all these driver protection systems warn via an audible beep or warning light, that is a lot to keep track of and still drive the car!

 

IMO...if you really need those Drivers Assistance gadgets...you should get the BMW.. Porsche are for people who really understands about cars and roads....toss those gadgets and learn how to drive....

 

Well, I'm a long time 911 owner and I happen to like some of these "gadgets", despite the ridicule I get from some of my "purist" 911 friends

I like the driving dynamics of the Macan, but I like the tech and gadgets too. And I'm far from the only Macan owner that feels this way. For me the Macan is not at all a sports car as I have a 996 in the other garage.

I reject the inference that I don't know how to drive just because I enjoy the gadgets at times too. And horror of horrors, if I were ordering a new 911 today my build would include some of the "gadgets".

 

Porsche Active Safe (on my 16S) will only prime the brakes and beep to tell you to hit the brakes. It has never activated on my car in the 23k miles of ownership. It leaves me wondering if I could actually hit the pedal fast enough to prevent hitting a vehicle.

 

You don’t have to be that quick. The instant you as much as touch the pedal, it will automatically slam full force on the brakes for a mind boggling short stop. Ask me how I know...


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@Shark I can’t answer most of your questions since I haven’t driven the M40i however, www.bmw.ca does have a video in the build it section of the website that demos the lane keeping. That system uses stereo cameras and 5 radar sensors around the body to determine how to best stay in the lane. That function seems similar to LKA however the system uses the radar sensors to determine adjacent vehicles and uses that data to avoid collisions. The system also reacts differently, or intervenes differently at lower speeds versus higher speeds.

Bmw blind spot monitoring operates similarly to the Porsche system but adds steering wheel vibration to the flashing lights in the mirror.

The Stop & Go part of BMW ACC should automatically resume preset the preset speed once traffic starts moving. Audi’s does the same but it’s called Traffic Jam Assistant.

I don’t know how any of the other systems function but there are more. Additionally, I forgot to mention in my previous post that the BMW will also park itself (Parking Assistant) and has pedestrian detection. Neither is available on the Macan.

 

It would be immensely helpful for PCNA to provide us with a video demonstrating exactly what happens when PAS activates. Just how loud is that alarm that says hit the pedal now? And how different is the brake activation from a driver doing 65mph and hitting the brakes hard vs the PAS? Is the stopping distance the same, or different? If road conditions are less than ideal, at any speed that PAS braking is activated is fish-tailing, or worse, the likely result. Do Porsche driving schools use this system in their efforts to make owners aware of the vehicles capability(track vs everyday life)? I think some of the answers would also apply to autonomous braking.

 

It is very loud and noticeable. First it blinks with a yellow warning. Then it beeps loudly again and flashes a red warning... if you don’t react then it jolts the brakes and that definitely gets your attention. As soon as you move your foot and touch the brake pedal, full force is applied to an already primed system, so it stops on a dime.

Of course ABS and PSM are still active, so even in less than ideal conditions you are not going to fishtail.


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Thanks, Alex_C, for the description of events.

 

I would look into X3's reliability issues. With M components, it would be more expensive. Not to say Macan won't have the same maintenance cost but I just want to point out X3 won't be cheap to maintain.

Update:
I just realized you are a BMW owner. I owned a 2008 E92 M3 before switching to Macan and my maintenance experience was really bad with my BMW. I thought I might be just unlucky. However, I have read through many BMW forum posts and discussed my maintenance problems with several of my friends who owned BMW. Many agreed with my assessment: any new BMW works great for 50k miles and they start to have unexpected issues. If you want to lease a BMW or sell it before 50k, go for it! Otherwise, I would choose Porsche for its reliability.

 

Just saw this

https://youtu.be/ncofxAMpiAE

 

Hi all. New to this forum, although long time Rennlist member and owner of a Diesel Cayenne and a 2014 Cayman. Lot's of helpful info here so glad I found it. Also wanted to say that I am looking for a smaller replacement for my '13 Cayenne, and I test drove the X3 M40i today. Just wow! Great car all the way around - very pleasantly surprised. My probable new Macan now has some serious competition (at least in my mind).

 

We have one of each; a '15 Macan S and a '17 X4M40i (I know, not the X3 variant). But honestly, the setup and 'form' for the X4 is closer to the Macan than the X3 is. My S is lightly optioned, with only PASM as a performance option. Of the two, I enjoy driving my macan more. But I'll also admit that on the rare occasion when she wants me to drive hers, I enjoy it too. Her transmission is no slouch, but only 80% of the pdk. Her exhaust is great, but would get on my nerves if we had to cross the state in it.... a bit too much drone. Sport and sport+ in hers are very responsive. I feel like her default drive mode is closer to my sport mode. Maybe my sport mode sits between her sport mode and sport+ mode. Steering is heavier in mine, but the feedback seems more honest. She's on 19's and I'm on 18's, so her road feel is a bit more crisp and of a higher frequency. The BMW interface is great visually, with lots of info. But I'll take my dated touch screen anyday over a wheel/dial input device. I honestly prefer the utilitarian aspect of my Macan interface over any other interface I've used lately. I have an '18 Tacoma, and some gritch about the interface. I actually think it's pretty good. But the only features in there that I would want to port to my Macan are the backup camera and Pandora, iheartradio etc. I think her seating is a touch higher than mine, and overall seating is a little larger but not by much at all. She has great leather (Oyster with Msport red stiching). I have stock alcantara. It's a wash between the two. Hers is beautiful, mine is subtly performance oriented.

Straight line, I'm pretty sure my butt dyno says hers is faster. Haven't tested top end of either, nor 80-120 acceleration. For average spirited driving, they'll probably perform equally well, though the Macan probably does so with a little more grace. For aggressive spirited driving, I think this is where the Macan will start to shine and pull away, literally. In the end, my wife really loves her car and I much prefer mine. But if we had to swap, I don't think either of us would be disappointed in the drive/performance of the other. My wife drove mine the other day (probably the first time in 3+ years). She commented that she felt it handled better. She's not an enthusiast by any measure of the word, but she does enjoy the cars and lately has started to appreciate the aural aspect of a car.

Here's the kicker; her MSRP was 67k, mine 57k. I got a bit more off hers than mine when purchasing, but not tons more. They are still a bit rare around here so not discounted like many Bimmers are.

She had an X3 that she drove for 9 years, while I added 1 more year to it. She loved that car, except for the pleather seats which were miserable here in Texas. She then had a 2014 Q5 that she just never bonded with. She's back in the Bimmer fold and is a happy camper again. Me, I'll stick to the Porsche world for now. Hoping to convert my Macan to a Cayman now that I have a solid alternate daily driver. You know, the only difference between a Macan and a Cayman is the 'y'.

 

Let us not forget how important it is to have an excellent relationship with the service department of the dealer. A very important and often overlooked factor IMO. It was one of the main factors I decided to stay with BMW and get a CPO X4 35i instead of a base Macan or even S. Plus for the money which Porsche charges and the upcoming facelift of the Macan, I would rather wait.

 

Drove the Macan S, GTS, and the X3 M40i. Decided on the GTS. The X3 M40i is certainly the value purchase. Feature to feature $20k cheaper. Car and Driver was correct...the new X3 setup is far more like the BMWs of the past. Far more communicative. And yup, it moves and barks when you get on it. Interior is nice but hollow compared to the Macan. You "settle in" when you sit in the Macan. You feel like you "settle on" in the X3. The interior tech is something to behold in the X3, but that isn't about driving. Oh...and the wife even noted the differences between the X3 and the Macan. At that point you know you've got something. The case for the Macan S vs the X3 M40i is a little tougher. At that point the M40i's breathtaking acceleration makes itself more known...but the case for the Macan interior still stands.

 

Before ordering my 2018 Macan S, I test drove a BMW X3 M40i and a Jaguar F-Pace S as well.

Yes the "off the line" acceleration in the M40i and the F-Pace S felt a little stronger, but after driving a Macan S with the Sport Chrono pkg., the Porsche was no slouch, and clearly was the best handler of the three...with the nicest seats & interior. The only con I can think right now about the Macan is it lacks some of the "tech" the other two had...case in point autonomous braking, a key safety feature my past two Mercedes had. And remote start would be nice, something the BMW didn't have either.

As for the cons on the other two vehicles, the BMW only comes with Summer tires on it's 20" and 21" wheels (run-flats...yuk!), and IMO the new X3 is still too boxy & boring looking. The Jaguar on the other hand is one sexy looking SUV, loved the responsive supercharged engine, but the ride was crashy on the 22" wheels, and the interior looked and felt the cheapest quality wise of the group.

Like I've read here on this site, once you've driven the Macan, your choice is made!

 

I was so torn between a Macan GTS and a X3 M40i that I decided to do my own comparo. Actually the M40i is for the wife even though she would have been perfectly happy with a standard X3 I have nothing yet to report on the comparo since the GTS arrived 2 days ago and the BMW this morning. They were ordered 3 months and 2 months ago respectively and happened to arrive at the same time.

 

Love it, could not decide so got one of each, great solution.

 

Same here also. I was contemplating the new Cayenne vs the new Macan and in either case, I would have to wait until the fall or later.. and I didn't want to do that cause warranty was expiring on the Benz. And besides, why miss a whole summer of fun in a Macan with the sunroof open in the end, I decided the potential new changes were probably not going to be a big deal. We will see major redeisgn in 2022. By then it will be time to trade in the Macan I just ordered.

 

Car and driver very in-depth review of the new X3 model range vs the Macan, GLC etc...very interesting how the Macan stacks up

https://www.caranddriver.com/review...ew-2018-bmw-x3-performance-and-driving-impressions-review-car-and-driver-page-4

 

Nice Car and Driver article, thanks. Interesting they decided to compare the Turbo PP vs the M40i in the same category. Not sure if those particular vehicles are punching in the same weight class.

 

Interesting they (Car & Driver) decided to compare the Turbo PP vs the M40i in the same category. Not sure if those particular vehicles are punching in the same weight class.

Agreed. The Macan GTS is more in the category with the X3 M40i...

 

I think the Car & Driver article is pretty accurate.

 

Though in the C&D article, I don't quite see why Macan S is compared in the category of X3 xdrive 30i, the latter being a 4 cylinder with 248 HP. Just because they never tested the base Macan?!