[stlcdr]

With all the cup holder talk, it’s interesting when people decide what ‘hill to die on’. I was talking to people at work about this car, and said I was concerned about the cup holders. Deciding to buy, or not buy, a 70k vehicle and the break point is cup holders?!

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by stlcdr

With all the cup holder talk, it’s interesting when people decide what ‘hill to die on’. I was talking to people at work about this car, and said I was concerned about the cup holders. Deciding to buy, or not buy, a 70k vehicle and the break point is cup holders?!

IMHO, the placement of the cupholders is similar to a rash on your body that won't go away! Every time I need to use the cupholder I wonder who was moron at BMW decided on this location?

[RigaTony1982]

Originally Posted by Westside Guy

IMHO, the placement of the cupholders is similar to a rash on your body that won't go away! Every time I need to use the cupholder I wonder who was moron at BMW decided on this location?

Lol. It’s really only bad if you’re a passenger. I guess the other option would have been to put them behind the shifter and make the center console area a little smaller. There is some dead space on the back of the console where it doesn’t open. Guess they could have pushed it back a little farther too.

[Living Dead]

Three things I'd change are: add a cupholder like in the E89 that plugs into the side of the console and analog gauges or at least digital gauges that look analog, the ones in my wife's A5 look so much better and the heads up display should be adjusted so that it can be read with polarized glasses, it's 90degrees out of phase.

[RigaTony1982]

Originally Posted by Living Dead

Three things I'd change are: add a cupholder like in the E89 that plugs into the side of the console and analog gauges or at least digital gauges that look analog, the ones in my wife's A5 look so much better and the heads up display should be adjusted so that it can be read with polarized glasses, it's 90degrees out of phase.

Good point on the digital gauges. I had a 2018 A5 with the Audi Virtual Cockpit, and the gauges/options were way better and more configurable in that car.

[MisanoblueZ4]

ND Miata’s have their cup holds behind the armrest requiring odd movements to reach but better then nothing. I think something similar can be done using the rear netting to “hold” some type of cupholders.
Still would require arm gymnastics to reach but bottles be out of the way until needed.

[ZZZ4 G29]

Wouldn’t change a thing, but still very annoyed that the front parking sensors can’t see a curb right in front of them, especially when a minor scrape is a ~$1500 repair job.

[bacampbe]

Originally Posted by ZZZ4 G29

Wouldn’t change a thing, but still very annoyed that the front parking sensors can’t see a curb right in front of them, especially when a minor scrape is a ~$1500 repair job.

Every car I've ever had that had front sensors have had this problem. You'd think the designers would learn to aim them down a little more. I've had some luck watching for a signal that starts then goes away as I approach a curb.

OTOH, the self-parking feature on my Z4 seems to actually work sometimes. It was completely useless on my M240i.

[RigaTony1982]

Originally Posted by bacampbe

Every car I've ever had that had front sensors have had this problem. You'd think the designers would learn to aim them down a little more. I've had some luck watching for a signal that starts then goes away as I approach a curb.

OTOH, the self-parking feature on my Z4 seems to actually work sometimes. It was completely useless on my M240i.

I live in a high-rise with shared parking, so since it perfectly centers me between two cars I almost always use it. I have never had an issue with it.

[ZZZ4 G29]

Originally Posted by bacampbe

Every car I've ever had that had front sensors have had this problem. You'd think the designers would learn to aim them down a little more. I've had some luck watching for a signal that starts then goes away as I approach a curb.

OTOH, the self-parking feature on my Z4 seems to actually work sometimes. It was completely useless on my M240i.

Good to know it’s not unique to Z4. I always forget about the automatic parking, but it has worked well for me on the occasions I’ve used it.

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by Living Dead

the heads up display should be adjusted so that it can be read with polarized glasses, it's 90degrees out of phase.

I don't believe that the HUD can be adjusted like that to work with polarized sunglasses.

Because of the limitations in BMW's HUD which prevented me from wearing my Maui Jim's I recently purchased a pair of non polarized "Drivers" sunglasses from Serengeti (now owned by Bolle). They have an amber color gradient photochromic glass lens and in my opinion they are just as good as my original Serengeti "Drivers" that were made back in the day by Corning Glass and considered among the best "Drivers" type sunglasses ever sold. I found a great deal online where the merchant shipped the sunglasses to me direct from their factory in Italy at a great price with free shipping. The MSRP from Serengeti was $260 and I paid only $159.80. The quality of the lenses and frame is top notch and they are a pleasure to wear.

If anyone is interested I will give the details.

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by ZZZ4 G29

Wouldn’t change a thing, but still very annoyed that the front parking sensors can’t see a curb right in front of them, especially when a minor scrape is a ~$1500 repair job.

Originally Posted by bacampbe

Every car I've ever had that had front sensors have had this problem. You'd think the designers would learn to aim them down a little more. I've had some luck watching for a signal that starts then goes away as I approach a curb.

OTOH, the self-parking feature on my Z4 seems to actually work sometimes. It was completely useless on my M240i.

I totally agree with you guys and that is why I always back into my spots whenever possible.

[BEAR-AvHistory]

Cup holder thing. Both my BMW's have the same front seat cockpit except for the seats & console.

Would have much preferred this console over the one we have.



Front lid closed



Front lid open. Two cup holders, two USB ports, one power port, phone cradle

Rear lid is a padded armrest over a large storage box.

[Living Dead]

Originally Posted by Westside Guy

I don't believe that the HUD can be adjusted like that to work with polarized sunglasses.

Because of the limitations in BMW's HUD which prevented me from wearing my Maui Jim's I recently purchased a pair of non polarized "Drivers" sunglasses from Serengeti (now owned by Bolle). They have an amber color gradient photochromic glass lens and in my opinion they are just as good as my original Serengeti "Drivers" that were made back in the day by Corning Glass and considered among the best "Drivers" type sunglasses ever sold. I found a great deal online where the merchant shipped the sunglasses to me direct from their factory in Italy at a great price with free shipping. The MSRP from Serengeti was $260 and I paid only $159.80. The quality of the lenses and frame is top notch and they are a pleasure to wear.

If anyone is interested I will give the details.

No I don't believe it can be adjust that way but it certainly could have been designed that way, I have 3 monitors on for my computer, one is oriented 90dgrees so it's long ways for reading documents if I put on my polarized glasses it is completely visible but the two other horizontal ones are completely black.

Do they make prescription glasses?

[Iam144]

None of these were deal breakers for me since I had already thought about them before purchase but:

The seats are comfortable for shorter trips but less so for longer trips...perhaps I am just getting old. I was in and out of the seats on a "turning leaf tour" with my wife across the San Juan Islands yesterday that ran about 13 hours so perhaps that is being picky. That being said, ventilated seats with neck scarf warmer (and chiller for the summer).

I prefer a 360 camera even though I have the parking assist...I have yet to find that faster than parking myself although I suppose it would probably be safer.

The 4 series convertible has trick corner cameras on the front corners of the car that can be activated for pulling out of a parking space or traffic. (I never trusted them for traffic but they were great for pulling out of parking between two SUVs say.)

Cupholders are a pain...I picked up a small seat/center console (search "Aurax Car Seat Gap Filler Organizer 2 Pack" on Amazon for example) that works great solo but is not useful when my wife is with me. It would have been nice to have a dash pop out cupholder for small cup in addition to the center mount.

I'd like an option for greater lighting in the front of the car...driving lights or fog lights. The headlights are not bad...but on a dark road or in poor weather, they could be better.

The sun visors don't extend all the way back on the side windows...this seems like another problem that has been solved by many others yet it didn't find its way to this car.

Finally, the area behind the seats is a nice little storage area made difficult to access by not having quick fold seats. Not an issue waiting for the seat to move forward when the weather is good but a real pain when it is raining!

[bacampbe]

Originally Posted by Living Dead

No I don't believe it can be adjust that way but it certainly could have been designed that way, I have 3 monitors on for my computer, one is oriented 90dgrees so it's long ways for reading documents if I put on my polarized glasses it is completely visible but the two other horizontal ones are completely black.

Do they make prescription glasses?

I am also in the market for some non-polarized sunglasses.

Serengeti makes prescription sunglasses, but it is hard to find an optician who sells them in these parts. There are some online sellers, but my prescription seems hard to get right without a human measuring the frames on my actual face. (Progressive lenses with astigmatism correction)

My favorite (pre-prescription) sunglass lens of all time was the Serengeti "Sedona" (originally "Vermillion") lens.

[Iam144]

Originally Posted by Living Dead

the heads up display should be adjusted so that it can be read with polarized glasses, it's 90degrees out of phase.

I have found by rotating the display a bit in settings, I can still wear my polarized Maui Jims and read the display - might be worth a try for you.

[Iam144]

Originally Posted by GerryC

I had some for my E85. I don't know what happened to them. They did work a lot better than the flimsy pop-out ones in the E85.

They were available from Ultimate Cupholders.

Not sure if they're still available. The site hasn't been updated since 2016. Someone could try sending him an email.

I called Mike today...he is backordered due to his hospitalization he mentioned on the site but said if interested, send an email and he'll let you know when they are available again...he figured a month or so out.

[RigaTony1982]

Originally Posted by Iam144

None of these were deal breakers for me since I had already thought about them before purchase but:

The seats are comfortable for shorter trips but less so for longer trips...perhaps I am just getting old. I was in and out of the seats on a "turning leaf tour" with my wife across the San Juan Islands yesterday that ran about 13 hours so perhaps that is being picky. That being said, ventilated seats with neck scarf warmer (and chiller for the summer).

I prefer a 360 camera even though I have the parking assist...I have yet to find that faster than parking myself although I suppose it would probably be safer.

The 4 series convertible has trick corner cameras on the front corners of the car that can be activated for pulling out of a parking space or traffic. (I never trusted them for traffic but they were great for pulling out of parking between two SUVs say.)

Cupholders are a pain...I picked up a small seat/center console (search "Aurax Car Seat Gap Filler Organizer 2 Pack" on Amazon for example) that works great solo but is not useful when my wife is with me. It would have been nice to have a dash pop out cupholder for small cup in addition to the center mount.

I'd like an option for greater lighting in the front of the car...driving lights or fog lights. The headlights are not bad...but on a dark road or in poor weather, they could be better.

The sun visors don't extend all the way back on the side windows...this seems like another problem that has been solved by many others yet it didn't find its way to this car.

Finally, the area behind the seats is a nice little storage area made difficult to access by not having quick fold seats. Not an issue waiting for the seat to move forward when the weather is good but a real pain when it is raining!

For the quick fold seats, I use memory setting #2 on each seat to move them all the way forward. Could be an option for you.

[Westside Guy]

[QUOTE=Living Dead;30555953]No I don't believe it can be adjust that way but it certainly could have been designed that way, I have 3 monitors on for my computer, one is oriented 90dgrees so it's long ways for reading documents if I put on my polarized glasses it is completely visible but the two other horizontal ones are completely black.

Do they make prescription glasses?


Yes they can do prescription glasses but they are expensive if you want their “Mineral glass” which is their top of the line optical quality that is made in Italy.

I recently had cataract surgery and my doctor fitted me for a “monovision” type prescription with my lens implants. It didn’t pay for me to order prescription sunglasses and spend a fortune to simply make a minor correction on the one eye that is for reading when I can see 20/15 with my dominant eye that is used for distance. However if you need both eyes corrected it might be worth the investment.

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by Iam144

I have found by rotating the display a bit in settings, I can still wear my polarized Maui Jims and read the display - might be worth a try for you.

I tried doing this and wasn’t satisfied. Also it is a pain in the butt to adjust it back for night driving when you aren’t wearing the sunglasses. 😎

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by bacampbe

I am also in the market for some non-polarized sunglasses.

Serengeti makes prescription sunglasses, but it is hard to find an optician who sells them in these parts. There are some online sellers, but my prescription seems hard to get right without a human measuring the frames on my actual face. (Progressive lenses with astigmatism correction)

My favorite (pre-prescription) sunglass lens of all time was the Serengeti "Sedona" (originally "Vermillion") lens.

What the online sellers probably need is the PD measurement and if you already have prescription glasses the optical store that sold them to you should be able to give you that measurement.