BMW Nz ConnectedDrive Launch

[MISS BM 712]

*Warning* Big Read

I was recently invited by BMW to the ConnectedDrive Launch for New Zealand.
I spent around four hours of my Thursday learning about the new system that we should expect to see across all NZ New BMWs, the services ConnectedDrive has to offer, as well as testing the new X3 LCI’s through Auckland (which had equipped the ConnectedDrive service)

BMW ConnectedDrive Driver Assist is a new technological revolution that will be present in all new BMW’s. It has pretty amazing features which see the car run off it’s own personal Sim Card, which in turn can be efficient for GPS, Calls to BMW Concierge, Internet availability, Emergency calling, accident notifications, TeleServices and remote services from your Phone.

BMW have really put the effort in to present a service which is one like no other.

I will jot down the brief explanations of each new service and what they are for (Direct from BMW NZ)

- Intelligent Emergency Call: In the event of a severe accident, the system automatically transmits your location and crash information to our Contact Centre, which can determine the risk of severe injury and then request help on your behalf.

- Emergency Request (SOS): In the event you or others around you require emergency assistance, push the SOS button to transmit your location to our Contact Centre and the appropriate help will immediately be directed to you.

- Enhanced Roadside Assistance: In the event of a vehicle malfunction, select the Mobile Care menu option to transmit your location and vehicle information, so we can quickly and accurately dispatch help.

- 24/7 Concierge Service: Want to know the best French restaurant or a five-star hotel? Talk to a friendly Response Specialist who will direct you and can even transfer the destination address and telephone number to your vehicle.

- TeleServices (Service Request): Your vehicle’s service status and needs are transmitted automatically or manually upon your request. Your BMW Service Advisor then contacts you to schedule a convenient appointment.

- My BMW Remote: Use the My BMW Remote app on your compatible mobile device for Remote Door Lock, Remote Light Flash, Remote Sound Horn and Vehicle Finder. You can even send locations and businesses to your vehicle right from your device.

- BMW Online keeps you updated on everything that’s happening. Read the latest news and weather reports. Find local businesses using Online Search. You can even find nearby fuel stations as well as ATM machines and parking buildings.

- MyInfo allows you to send business locations and street addresses to your BMW from the Google Maps™ website. The destination and phone number can be linked to the BMW Navigation system or your Bluetooth® phone.

- BMW Apps provides you with the ultimate integration between your smartphone and BMW. You can check your calendar, catch up on your latest RSS feeds, listen to web radio or Pandora, hear your Facebook News Feed with Text-to-Speech technology, and so much more

And now my experience with using these news services.
Some of the ConnectedDrive services run on a subscription (generally lasts 3 years +) which is what you can expect for an individual sim and concierge service direct to your car.

The free services which are available for the lifetime of the car is the SOS/Emergency services and of course the TeleServices.
The ConnectedDrive Services and Apps comes at a reasonable cost of $600 for 3 years. This includes everything minus your internet and Concierge service which comes at an extra cost of $150 a year for Internet usage, and $400 for 3 years worth of Concierge services

With the above subscriptions, you get an online access portal which can be used to send things direct to your car like lists of directions to upcoming locations you could want to visit.
It’s actually really impressive! When we set out on our journey, the event organisers set in the address and sent it to all of the individual cars so when we jumped in, it allowed us to open up ‘messages’ and follow the Nav System.

Navigation to the first location took a bit to get used too. The heads up display features the arrows, directions, and distance before turns/stops etc and of course that wonderful voice which shuts the background music down to tell you to ‘Turn in 500m’. You also have the Nav system on the On Board screen, so you can follow both if you choose.

We then manually set the directions in to the Nav to head on to the next location point. Using the dial as your keyboard was again interesting, but there is also the voice activation function (which we didn’t get to use as the manual is the size of a dictionary!).

Next up on the test the services list was ringing up the BMW concierge service, which is a 24/7 Call Centre for all your needs. We rang them up, asked them to locate our next destination (Ostro for Lunch) and they sent the information direct to the car to confirm and we were on our way..

I found it slightly edgy that my cars location can be pin pointed anywhere, at any time.. Is there a potential for this to become a breach of privacy in some cases? After Lunch we headed back to BMW NZ.

The services all round were a great feature, but I felt that because I only had a short period to get used to the new cars, and this new service, it was distracting. Give me a week and I wouldn’t know what to do without the services, I am sure!

Onto the driving section, the New X3s.
I have never driven an X car, nor have I been a huge fan of the smaller versions (X1 X3) so it was a change to jump into something with a bit of height, and also, a diesel.

I LOVE the diesels, and I certainly didn’t before. The power is something I would of never expected and the Torque is a whole other story. BMW have done something right in this department because I felt like I was driving a car, not a Diesel SUV.

The steering is light, the interior something you would find in an elite sedan but placed delicately in the X3 as if to compliment the fact your are driving a ‘prestige’ SUV. The car is packed with technology such as reversing cameras, Parking Assist, ConnectedDrive, the list really does go on.
When I gave it some gas, it felt like you left your pleasant Remuera Shopping Trolley behind and were in a beast that just wanted to keep going.

The 3L Diesel has nice figures of 190KW with 560nm and the 2L diesel is 140kw with 400nm. They both made my car look like a slug.

If I have the opportunity, I will almost certainly be wanting to test the Diesel in a Coupe or Sedan with a sportier feel.. I can only imagine the experience will be a shock.

You either hate or love the X3 Exterior, but I personally liked it a lot. It complements the fact this car IS a BMW. The M Sport package is available, and presents these cars with some extra features like Rims, HUD, Adaptive headlights, etc.

At a pleasant figure of just above $100,000 for the 3L and around $90,000 for the 2L, it seems like an achievable target for those later on in life that want a nice daily driver.

I had a fantastic day, with fantastic people and fantastic cars! Thank you to BMW NZ for the attendance of the Launch and some fantastic lunch filled with a few little gifts. It was a great day all round and loved the experience of yet more New BMW’s

[MD13 494]

That new job in the BMW marketing department is going well then :-)

[MISS BM 712]

That new job in the BMW marketing department is going well then :-)

Would be a great company to work for, but unfortunately I don't lol

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2959]

There is a vacancy at the moment if you are interested Amber, you would be an great candidate.

[kwhelan 241]

pretty scary when hackers can get into the sim card tho. the more high tech they go they easier they are to steal All that online assist stuff scares the crap out of me

[westy 614]

I just cant for the life of me generate any interest in any of this stuff.

I just want a big engine, 3 pedals and not much weight. No too much to ask shirley?

[MISS BM 712]

I just cant for the life of me generate any interest in any of this stuff.

 

I just want a big engine, 3 pedals and not much weight. No too much to ask shirley?

I was very much like that through my M4 experience, but I had to sort of accept things are going forward in regards to Tech, and I'll always have my E46 love which provides the lack of technology we will see in years to come

It was pretty cool to see what 'can' be done though

[MD13 494]

I just cant for the life of me generate any interest in any of this stuff.

I just want a big engine, 3 pedals and not much weight. No too much to ask shirley?

Apparently we are in the minority. Everyone seems to want assisted everything

[westy 614]

I guess we'll have to disagree on what 'going forward in tech' means. Just seems like a techno-geeks idea of progress. Have they run out of real ideas?

And yeah, resigning myself to minority status. There'll always be old stuff to muck around with as long as we get the petrols.

[Haitoman 110]

ConnectedDrive is a load of very expensive bollocks. Had it in the UK for 4 years and never used it once. The Nav and map features are great around Central London but useless in downtown Eketahuna. SOS feature....great on the M4 or the Autobahn but on the Hutt Road a mobile phone does the job nicely.

[MISS BM 712]

ConnectedDrive is a load of very expensive bollocks. Had it in the UK for 4 years and never used it once. The Nav and map features are great around Central London but useless in downtown Eketahuna. SOS feature....great on the M4 or the Autobahn but on the Hutt Road a mobile phone does the job nicely.

Innovative but potentially useless to some.

I went from an E46 into this so was all a 'new toy' feeling.

At the end of the day I enjoyed driving the car more than the system, but wouldn't mind having it just cause

[polley 916]

pretty scary when hackers can get into the sim card tho. the more high tech they go they easier they are to steal All that online assist stuff scares the crap out of me

The more high tech the easier to steal? I guess you havent heard of EWS?

[polley 916]

I just cant for the life of me generate any interest in any of this stuff.

I just want a big engine, 3 pedals and not much weight. No too much to ask shirley?

Yeah agreed. The only thing these cars are good for are later on donating their engines to someone like us when some posh wanker stacks it.

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2959]

ConnectedDrive is a load of very expensive bollocks. Had it in the UK for 4 years and never used it once. The Nav and map features are great around Central London but useless in downtown Eketahuna. SOS feature....great on the M4 or the Autobahn but on the Hutt Road a mobile phone does the job nicely.

Connected Drive covers a whole range of features, these latest ones haven't been available for years, even overseas. And they are provided free on new cars.

Mobile phone is ok, but when you are upside down and unconscious how are you going to use it?

[Haitoman 110]

Connected Drive covers a whole range of features, these latest ones haven't been available for years, even overseas. And they are provided free on new cars.

Mobile phone is ok, but when you are upside down and unconscious how are you going to use it?

All of the features above have been available in the UK since MY2010-11 and are not free. The ConnectedDrive Services package is currently 490 pounds plus VAT and that includes an initial subscription. The annual fee is 150 pounds plus which will be over $300 per year here... That's a lot of cash for that one occasion that you are in a ditch and cant reach your mobile. All of the Internet features can be retro-installed. I get email, sms, BMW apps, weather, twitter-feed etc. on the iDrive screen through my smart phone (6NR teleservices option). Obviously I can't send location information to the Nav from Googlemaps but really...?

[MISS BM 712]

In NZ, the SOS/Emergency Services, and Teleservices ARE free.

You pay $600 for 3 years worth of ConnectedDrive and Apps, which includes free remote control. Concierge service is $400 for 3 years and $150 a year Internet.

If you were already buying a new car outright for 100k, I don't think a few hundred extra is going to knock you over..

Edit: this information is all true and correct, as directly from BMW Nz, handed over to me on Launch date

Edited September 26, 2014 by MISS BM

[Haitoman 110]

Fair enough if it comes as part of the package in NZ and includes a couple of years' subscriptions. I guess where I'm coming from is when it is not a new car anymore and the 4th owner has to find many hundreds of dollars per year if he/she wants to use these services when most are available via smartphone connectivity.

[kiwi535 538]

I guess we'll have to disagree on what 'going forward in tech' means. Just seems like a techno-geeks idea of progress. Have they run out of real ideas?

And yeah, resigning myself to minority status. There'll always be old stuff to muck around with as long as we get the petrols.

you dont have to have the assist...the basic service info would be enough for me+a clutch ,a gps,and or smart phone,and a forum like this is enough for me too.